The Thing About a Baby
by sailor-elsa
Summary: Usagi is pregnant with Chibiusa and hilarity, fluffiness, and angst ensues. A series of long-ish drabbles regarding Mamoru and Usagi (and the senshi) as they prepare for a certain pink-haired terror.
1. The thing about surprises

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon**

**~~READ VERY IMPORTANT~~**

**OKAY, so this is a series of long-ish drabbles with Mamoru and Usagi in which Usagi is pregnant with Chibusa and things are smushy and cute because I like things that are smushy and cute. AND it's been awhile but I'm pretty sure that Usagi gets pregnant with Chibs when she's Neo-Queen Serenity, but for this story.. no.. heh. I just think 20th century Usagi and Mamoru preparing for baby Chibs would be so freaking cute. Cause they're not royalty and they're not as wise as Endymion and Serenity so they would be like "OH MY GOODNESS BABY!" **

**~~ALSO VERY IMPORTANT~~**

**I tried to educate myself via Google on how bathrooms vs. toilet rooms in Japan (I KNOW, STUPID, BUT IT'S AN IMPORTANT DETAIL TO ME). I live in 'Murica, but I know that in some countries the toilets and bathrooms are seperate, and I needed to educate myself on something before I went head first into it. **

**Very important. **

**Also have you ever googled 'how long does it take a pregnancy test to develop' and then leave it alone, and then get caught by your mother.. cause I did. I had to convince her I wasn't pregnancy, Usagi-chan was.**

**That went well. **

* * *

Usagi dragged herself up the stairs to Rei's temple. Saying she _dragged _herself up the stairs wasn't an understatement. The 21-year-old was feeling incredibly sick as of late, and if it wasn't for her proneness to loneliness and Mamoru's late night shifts at the hospital, she would have called Rei and told her she couldn't make it to their meeting.

Well, it wasn't quite a meeting since there hadn't been any threatening villain other than the occasional youma for awhile now. It was really just an excuse for Minako, Rei, and Usagi to get together and pig out.

Ami was in America studying and Makoto was incredibly busy with her bakery.

Minako, Rei, and Usagi were the only three who attended the meetings.

She finally made it to the top step, sighed heavily and walked straight to Rei's room without even knocking. She wasn't surprised to see Minako and Rei already pigging out and Luna begging them to stop gossiping and to listen to what she had to say.

Rei looked up and smiled at Usagi. "Ah, you're late Usagi-chan.. like always."

Usagi rolled her eyes and waved her hand slightly. She had gotten slightly more punctual with age, but she still terribly tarty on occasions. She had considered herself more mature, but she was still Usagi.

That means she was just as hungry, just as sleepy, and still enjoyed video games and manga.

"Yeah, yeah." Usagi mumbled plopping next to Minako, and lying her head down.

Minako and Rei were taking success slowly. Minako had started recording some songs and Rei was working extra hard at her career as a businesswoman but they still managed to stay around.

She was happy for Ami and Mako-chan, but the selfish part of Usagi missed them terribly.

Minako and Rei looked at each other and then back at Usagi, they were absolutely flabbergasted.

"Usagi-chan, we have a whole plate full of yummy deserts and you're not even gonna touch them?" Minako questioned.

"I think maybe this is the work of a new enemy. They took our Usagi-chan, and we have to get her back." Rei said jokingly, she pointed at Usagi and raised her voice. "Show yourself evil doer, or I will chastise you in the name of Mars."

Usagi looked up and glared at Rei, she didn't even have the nerve to stick her tongue out.

"And she isn't even sticking her tongue out at you, Rei-chan. She must not be Usagi!" Luna said.

"I really just don't feel well, okay?" Usagi mumbled shaking her head. "I'm not even hungry."

Minako lifted Usagi's head up and gently rested the back of her hand on Usagi's forehead. "You don't have a fever. How long have you been sick, did it just start today?"

Usagi lifted her head up and thought about it for a second before answering.

"Well, not really, I was sick yesterday too. It just became worse this morning, I threw up and I'm just really exhausted." Usagi pouted. "I don't like being sick and Mamo-chan isn't home so he can't take care of me!"

Rei and Minako looked at each other with wide eyes and then back at Usagi.

"Usagi," Rei started slowly, "have you and Mamoru-san, you know.."

"What?" Usagi asked.

"Had sex." Minako stated rather bluntly.

"Minako!" Rei gasped.

"Well, sorry Rei-chan, they're a married couple so might as well be blunt with it." Minako shrugged.

Usagi's face turned a deep shade of red, and she quickly looked down and fiddled with her hands. "Well.. I mean.. y-yeah.. we're married. So yeah." She stammered. "Why do you ask?"

Rei smacked her forehead so hard the sound resonated through the room. "Usagi you baka!"

"I don't understand.." Usagi trailed off.

"Usagi-chan, are you sure you aren't pregnant?" Minako giggled.

Usagi didn't say a word. She didn't really consider that possibility. Sure, she and Mamoru had been trying for months but they hadn't had much luck. They had decided that Chibiusa would come when she came and they shouldn't rush it. So they had taken a break on trying and Usagi hadn't thought it would happen until the creation of Crystal Tokyo.

"Oh my goodness.." Usagi smiled, she could have cried. "Yeah, I could be!"

"There's only one way to find out!" Minako stood up and lifted her hand into the air. "I, Minako Aino, will purchase a pregnancy test for you Usagi-chan. You will pee on the magic stick and we will find out!"

"Minako, just go." Rei muttered. "We'll be here, try to hurry."

"I'm on it!" Minako yelled triumphantly before speeding out of the room.

* * *

It was almost an hour before Minako returned, and Rei could have killed her. That means she was stuck with a very anxious Usagi for an hour, and Rei could barely deal with a non-anxious Usagi, so one could only imagine how terrible an anxious one would be.

Rei had to constantly remind herself that her best friend could very well be pregnant with a certain pink haired baby, so shaking her wasn't exactly the healthiest thing for her or the baby.

Minako finally returned, out of breath, with a shopping bag in her hand.

"Minako-chan, what took you so long!" Usagi practically screeched.

"Heh.." Minako giggled awkwardly, scratching the back of her hand. "I.. uh.. thought it would be a good time for an autograph session, I mean I'm soon on my way to be a famous idol you know."

Rei had to hold onto Usagi's arm to keep her from ripping Minako's head off.

"Anyway," Minako retrieved the desired object from the bag and handed it to Usagi, "I bought the magic pee stick. So, you know, go pee on it and we'll see if Chibiusa is on her way so we can spoil her rotten."

"Yeah." Usagi nodded, she looked up wearily. "Only I don't have to pee."

Rei once again smacked her forehead. She was definitely going to give herself a concussion before the day ended. She might have to admit herself into a psych ward if she had to spend another moment with the blonde dream team.

"I have thar covered, sweet Usa-chan." Minako smiled, she pulled out a horrible carbonated beverage from the bag and handed it to Usagi. "I knew your bladder wouldn't cooperate."

It took about an hour of Usagi downing that horribly carbonated beverage before she actually had to use the toilet. Minako and Rei escorted their friend to the toilet and waited anxiously in the hallway.

"Uh.. guys.." Usagi called.

"Yeah!" Minako and Rei said in unison.

"What side do I pee on?" She asked.

That time, Minako and Rei smacked their foreheads at the same time.

"I'll go help her." Minako mumbled, her face turning a bright shade of red. "Usagi-chan, I'm only doing this because you're my best friend and future Queen. If it wasn't for that, you would be on your own."

It took a bit for Minako to instruct Usagi how to pee on the thing, because Minako had decided to do it with her eyes closed. After that they waited in the hallway. Usagi sit between Minako and Rei who held her hands.

It only took five minutes but it was probably the longest five minutes of Usagi's life.

But it was totally worth it. Minako and Rei swore to themselves they had never heard their best friend squeal so loud. Usually her squealing would be something the would groan about, but not this time.

They were too happy.

She ran into their arms and jumped up and down and they managed to jump with her. Minako had happy tears streaming down her face, and Rei did as well even though she would like to deny it.

"I'm s-so happy!" Usagi squealed. "Oh my goodness, I'm going to be a mother! I'm going to have a baby, Mamo-chan and I are going to have a baby! Mamo-chan and I are going to be parents.. Mamo-chan!"

"What about him?" Minako smiled.

"I gotta tell him!" Usagi exclaimed. "I have to tell him now!"

"Usagi-chan, he's working right now. Can't it wait until he gets home?" Luna suggested.

In their excitement, they had forgotten about the two felines who were anxiously awaiting the news as well.

"But he doesn't get home until really late, and I have to tell him now.. he would want to know!" Usagi explained. "I-I have to go and tell him."

"If it means that much to you, I'll take you Usa-chan." Minako winked.

"M-Minako-chan, are you sure you're the one who should drive.. I mean you're not exactly the best-" Artemis said uneasily before Minako sent him a death glare that stopped him mid-sentence.

"I have to go!" Usagi exclaimed, grabbing Minako's hand and pulling her out of the hallway. "Come on Minako-chan!"

"H-Hey I want to go too!" Rei yelled.

* * *

It hadn't taken very long to get to the hospital because of Minako's less than safe driving. Rei had to constantly remind her that Usagi _**was **_pregnant and they were all going to die if she kept driving at the speed she was driving.

But, alas, they got there alive. Usagi had practically jumped out of the car, leaving the two girls behind. She knew exactly the floor Mamoru worked on; she had grown accustomed to delivering burnt cookies to the Mamoru and the staff on rare occasions.

They thought it was endearing, and Usagi was in their good graces.

She stopped at the front desk where a receptionist was working. She must have been new, because Usagi had never seen her before. She was typing away and she only looked up when a very breathless Usagi slid to a stop in front of the desk.

"I need to see my husband!" Usagi gasped.

"Okay, if you would only give me his name and I can tell you what room he is in.."

"No, my husband is a doctor and I need to see him right away, okay?" Usagi explained. "I just need to know what room he is working in so I can talk to him it's really important."

"Uh.. I don't know if I can do that.." The receptionist gulped.

"Ahh.. If it isn't Chiba-san's sweet wife!" An old nurse approached. "More cookies?"

"No, sorry. I need to talk to my Mamo-chan right now it's really important and I-"

"Well he's just in the last room on your left." She smiled gently. "Straight down there."

"Arigato!" Usagi smiled.

The the receptionist and the old nurse watched as the young woman ran down the hallway.

"Is she allowed to..?" The younger one trailed off.

"She is a sweet young woman," The older woman mused. "And just look at her face, she's glowing, I'm sure she has some big news for that husband of hers."

"How sweet." The younger woman smiled.

"Yep, and I guess that means I won the bet." The old nurse chuckled.

"What bet?" The young receptionist asked.

"I bet that it would only take a year for those two to get pregnant, and it looks like I was right." The older nurse smiled triumphantly.

* * *

"Well your vitals look good, and your fever has went down." Mamoru explained to the old man in front of him, he looked down at the clipboard. "I believe you're ready to go home tonight."

"Ah.. That's great, really great-" The old man went to say, but he was cut off my a loud, shrill voice.

"Mamo-chan!" Usagi wrapped her arms around her husband, practically pushing him onto the ground with all of her weight.

The young man looked down at the woman, shocked. It wasn't unlike her to come to the hospital while he was working, but she had never actually interrupted his discussions with a patient.

"U-Usako?" He gasped.

"M-Mamo-chan I have great, great news.. Mamo-chan, great news!" Usagi exclaimed.

"I'm really sorry about this." Mamoru explained to the old man. "Usako, I'm talking to a patient right now. Couldn't this great news until I came home tonight? I thought we agreed that you wouldn't interrupt my work."

"You don't understand Mamo-chan." Usagi smiled. "I was at the temple today, right? And I was feeling really bad and I threw up this morning, right? So anyway I just didn't feel like eating, okay? Anyway, Rei-chan asked me if you and I had.. you know.."

"Usako, just spit it out." Mamoru sighed.

"Mamo-chan, I'm pregnant!" Usagi giggled, tears threatening to fall from her eyes once again.

"That's great Usako, but I'm in the middle of.." Mamoru stopped and processed what she had said. He slowly looked down at Usagi, and the clipboard that he was clutching fell from his hands and his mouth fell open. "You're.. pregnant?"

Usagi nodded enthusiastically.

"Oh my God, I'm going to be a father." Mamoru mumbled to himself. He looked at the old man in front of him who was smiling his earnest, and down to his beautiful wife. "I'm going to be a father!" He laughed.

"Usako!" He laughed again.

It was uncharacteristic for Mamoru to be so affectionate in public, but he found himself picking up his wife and spinning her. She giggled and he laughed, it was easily one of the happiest moments of his life.

"Oh, I shouldn't do that!" Mamoru said, placing her back on her feet. "I-I just, I love you so much.." He bent down and talked directly to her abdomen, "I love you both so much!"

"I'm so happy." She whispered.

"Me too." He nodded in agreement.

The two embraced each other, unaware that Minako, Rei, and a group of nurses had gathered outside the room. Minako and Rei were holding onto each other happily, and the nurses looked at the oldest nurse with eyes full of jealousy.

"Pay up." The older nurse giggled to her colleagues.

* * *

_**I have big plans, okay?**_


	2. The thing about patience

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon

**Author's note that I would really like you read, please and thank you: **

**OKAY, I haven't updated this in a month, which is ridick. I usually don't go missing until like the fifth chapter.. but life kinda got in the way tbh. I got accepted to my first choice University and I had so much stuff to do, I volunteer so that was in the way.. and I had papers, and then I had an asthma attack so I was rushed to the hospital. **

**Anyway, I really have a bunch of ideas. **

* * *

"She looks like a peanut, don't you think?" Usagi mused.

Mamoru looked over at his wife, as she lifted the the picture in the air. The two were sitting in bed after a long yet exciting day. He watched as she stared at it intently, her finger tracing the outline of Chibiusa's peanut shaped body. He had expected her to fall asleep, because sleeping was all that she had seemed to be doing that week. But alas, she was still up staring at the the baby.

"Well, she will grow, of course." He chuckled, pushing his glasses back onto his face and tried to continue reading the book he was currently indulged in.

Key word, _trying. _Every time he would make a comment, Usagi would say something and it would lead to a conversation. He was really hoping she would fall asleep soon so he could read.

"Of course," Usagi rolled her eyes, "we know she'll be really cute. I'll have the cutest baby on Earth!"

He nodded in agreement.

"Don't you think, Mamo-chan?"

"Hmm?"

Usagi tugged on her bangs and glared up at him. "Don't you think we'll have the cutest baby on Earth?"

Mamoru chuckled, when she snagged the book out of his hand and set it next to her. He looked at his feisty wife, who was glaring at him with a look that demanded an answer.

"The cutest." He replied.

"Yeah, she'll be the cutest." Usagi agreed.

He gently retrieved his book from her side and continued his reading. From the side of his eye he watched as Usagi stared at the picture, her other hand resting on her abdomen. Her hand was rubbing her stomach in small, soothing motions.

It's hard to believe she had been in such a bad mood that morning. It had taken quite some coaxing to even get her to leave the bathroom. She had been terrified that the doctor would have bad news. She had been terrified that the doctor would tell her she wasn't pregnant or that something was wrong with Chibiusa.

When they actually got there she wouldn't let go. He rubbed his arm, wincing as he touched the bruises she had put on his arm. Of course, everything was fine. But he expected the same treatment at the next appointment.

"You know, Usa-ko.." Mamoru smiled. "She's too small right now, you won't be able to feel her."

Usagi tugged on her bangs once more, and glared at Mamoru. He looked down at her with a grin, of course he would have to tease her. She had been going on and on about plans ever since the appointment, despite him constantly telling her it was far too early.

"Party pooper." Usagi mumbled.

Mamoru chuckled once more.

"Y'know, I can feel her." Usagi said matter-of-factly. "I really can. I know she's there."

"That's because you're her mother." Mamoru explained.

"You know what we should do tomorrow, Mamo-chan?" Usagi smiled. "We should go shopping and start picking out the things she's going to need. You know what they say, the early worm catches the bird!"

"The early bird catches the worm." Mamoru corrected.

She had been around Minako for far too long.

"But wouldn't it be fun, Mamo-chan?" Usagi enthused.

"Usa-ko, it's a bit too early, don't you think?" He sighed, closing his book. "I mean.. we still have people to tell. We have to tell the rest of the girls, and more importantly your mother and father. Have patience."

"I'm impatient!" Usagi exclaimed, flopping on the bed dramatically.

"I think you have far too much energy for this late, maybe you should try to sleep?" Mamoru suggested.

Usagi pouted but nodded her head slightly. Without a word, he turned to his book once more.

After a few minutes he could hear her snoring, and a few minutes after that she had managed to dig her foot in his thigh without even turning over. It was uncomfortable but he didn't have the heart to wake her up and ask her to move her foot.

After all, he was used to it.

The man yawned, and turned towards the clock. It read midnight, and he decided that perhaps he should go to sleep as well. He set his book on the end table by the bed and turned towards Usagi to try to retrieve some of the blanket from her; that was always a difficult task because she would cocoon herself in the blanket at some point during the night and he always woke up freezing.

The blanket was pushed down to her knees, her pajama shirt was pushed up past her stomach, and her hand was, once again, resting on her flat belly. Mamoru smiled affectionately and watched her as her chest rose up and down slowly.

Quietly he leaned down and kissed her stomach. He looked up to make sure Usagi was asleep, and proceeded to have a conversation with a certain pink haired little girl.

"Hello, Chibiusa." He whispered. "I can't wait until you're here in our world. We've been waiting for you for a long time. I'm your papa and I promise that you will never be lonely. You will never know a lonely day, and I will protect you and your mama no matter what.

"We can't until you're in our lives again.. your mama really can't wait." He laughed.

He rested his hand on his wife's belly, and he could feel Chibiusa. He could feel her life, and he could feel her growing. He could feel everything about his child, who was yet to grow to even look like a baby. He knew she would grow into an independent and courageous young lady with a heart like her mother's and a brain like her father's. He could feel her heart growing courageous by the minute.

"Mamo-chan, she's too small right now, she won't be able to hear you." A groggy voice stated.

Mamoru looked up to see Usagi smiling at him. She used his own words against him, and he felt a pang of guilt for dismissing her enthusiasm and eagerness. He leaned over and kissed her on the nose, making her giggle.

"You know what we should do?" Mamoru smiled.

"What?"

"We should go shopping tomorrow." He suggested.

Usagi smiled her earnest and wrapped her arms around Mamoru's waist, burying her face in his chest. He leaned over and kissed her forehead, and allowed her to dig her foot in his thigh once more.

* * *

**_PLEASE ALSO READ THIS: Eh, wasn't my best. Sorry. I have a better chapter in store, and much longer. I originally made this longer and different but I wanted to update soon so I rewrote it. I'll post that chapter eventually. It's the appointment chapter which is actually pretty cute, but long and I kinda forgot where I was going with it because.. well, I was busy getting sick and stuff. _**

**_Anyway, review please._**

**_Also, sorry. _**


	3. The thing about parents

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon**

_I.. I have no excuse as to why I haven't updated.. okay, maybe I do. I had finals. But other than that I was too lazy to open up a word document and write. Though I do have more chapters in mind. _

* * *

"-Well right now she looks like a peanut, but a cute peanut."

Mamoru turned his head to look at his wife. Usagi was currently on the phone with Minako and he was surprised to see her up so early, she was usually sleeping in until noon. He figured that she had gotten sick that morning, and hadn't been able to fall back to sleep. It had been happening for the past few days, but he usually tried his best to help when she needed him.

"Minako- no, don't talk about that!" Usagi whined, her cheeks turning bright red. She reached in the freezer and grabbed the carton of ice cream. "Well, I don't know but I know she's already causing me trouble by making me feel sick all of the time.. so it's definitely Chibi-Usa."

Mamoru chuckled slightly and continued his work. Usagi sat next to him, balancing the phone between her shoulder and ear and a spoon in one hand and the ice cream in the other. Mamoru would have told her perhaps a balanced breakfast would have been a lot better for her, but he was afraid of her reaction and it was noon anyway, so breakfast was over.

"We're going to have dinner with my mama and papa tonight, so that's when we'll tell them." Usagi explained to Minako.

Mamoru dropped his pencil as soon as he heard that sentence. Usagi looked at Mamoru, a concerned but aggravated look on her face. He had completely spaced the dinner with her family, and now he was going to pay the price.

Usagi rubbed her forehead. "Sorry, Minako-chan, I have to go."

Usagi hung up the phone and looked at her very flustered husband, who was currently try to contain his ultimate fear of being murdered by his wife's father. She tilted her head to the left and let out a deep breath through her nose.

"You forgot."

"I forgot." Mamoru confirmed.

"Mamo-chan!" She groaned.

"I'm sorry.." He sighed. "Can't we tell them, you know, when you're a bit more pregnant?"

"No way!" Usagi snapped. "You can't do that Mamoru-baka! Only one of us gets to be a giant flake, and that's me! If we wait until later, papa is just going to want to kill you even more for not telling him earlier, and I might let him!"

Mamoru flinched as Usagi slammed her spoon on the table. She was definitely on edge as of late, and he had pressed a nerve. It had been a long time since she had called him _Mamoru-baka, _and he was certain she wasn't bluffing when she said she would let her papa murder him.

She got up and stormed out, but not before stopping in the doorway and glaring at him.

"You better be ready by tonight." She snapped.

Thus, Mamoru was left alone with Usagi's half eaten ice cream, and his own conscious smacking him in the face.

* * *

If Mamoru had a list of things he was incredibly uncomfortable with, Usagi giving him the silent treatment would be on the very top. He certainly wasn't used to it. Usagi was always quick to forgive and as talkative as they come. It turns out, when she was really upset she could give one terrible cold shoulder. He had learned that the hard way because she had refused to talk to him all day.

Honestly, Mamoru was frightened on how easy it had been to anger Usagi lately. The woman was only six weeks pregnant, and with so many more weeks to go, Mamoru could see many silent treatments in his near future.

He stopped the car in front of the Tsukino house, and turned towards Usagi. She was sitting with her elbows against pressed against her knees and her chin resting in her hands.

"I'm sorry." The both said in unison.

"I'm sorry that I forgot, Usa-ko. It was insensitive of me to suggest we tell them at a later time. They're your parents and I shouldn't let my fear get in the way of you telling them the good news." He apologized.

"It wasn't your fault," she sighed, "I've been feeling bad and I took it out on you."

He grabbed her hand and caressed her knuckle with his finger. Usagi smiled and pressed her other hand on top of his. She looked up at her old home and back at her husband with a sympathetic smile.

"We should go inside, they're probably waiting for us."

They made their way to the front door, hand in hand. Mamoru could feel his heart pounding in his chest. He adored Usagi's family, and usually found himself envying how close they were. But he had to admit, while Ikuko was sweet and loving, Kenji somehow made him fear for his life. Usagi knocked on the door, and within seconds she was engulfed in her mother's arms.

"Hello, mama!" Usagi giggled, hugging her mother back.

Mamoru and Usagi entered the home and Ikuko shut the door behind them. Mamoru could see Kenji watching from the dining room, next to Shingo who was growing taller and less recognizable every day.

"You look well, dear!" Ikuko smiled.

Usagi pulled on her dress, suddenly feeling nervous that her mother would be able to tell she was pregnant before she even got the chance to tell her. Usagi gently nudged Mamoru in an attempt to get her mother's attention off of her.

Mamoru complied. "The food smells great."

"Well, I made all of Usagi-chan's favorites of course." Ikuko replied.

Mamoru looked at Usagi, who was currently on cloud nine. Her mouth was open slightly and he could already see the drool threatening to fall down her chin. Usagi's appetite was legendary, but he was sure pregnant Usagi's appetite would take that title.

Both Ikuko and Mamoru watched as Usagi was carried off by some unknown force; the promise of food and pleasure. Usagi believed every word of that promise as she drifted off into the kitchen.

Mamoru chuckled and went to follow his wife, but he was stopped by Ikuko. The woman had gently grabbed a hold of Mamoru's wrist and she was smiling at him gently.

"Chiba-san," she began. "You're going to be a great father."

He was shell shocked as she let go of him and turned to follow her daughter.

"I.. how do you.." Mamoru stammered.

"I'm her mother, I know these things." Ikuko replied.

* * *

Mamoru was pretty sure Kenji would burn a hole through his forehead. He had, on occasions, had very pleasant conversations with Kenji. Those conversations were always about Mamoru's duty at the hospital. But anytime Mamoru brought up something about Usagi, Kenji grew a bit critical. It was to expected, of course. Usagi was their very spoiled daughter, and while it wasn't that much, there was an age difference between the two.

This time was different though, because it was obvious that Usagi and Mamoru had something on their minds. Well, Mamoru had something on his mind, if Usagi had anything on her mind it was replaced by her desire to eat.

"This is so good." Usagi moaned, tossing her head back and pushing the empty plate away from her.

Her fourth empty plate actually.

"I'm glad you like it, dear." Ikuko said to her daughter. "But make sure you save some for dessert."

"So how's work at the hospital?" Kenji suddenly asked.

Mamoru turned his head away from his wife and onto Kenji. Mamoru cleared his throat, and tried to stop his hands from shaking underneath the table. Why did he always get so nervous? It wasn't like he hadn't asked for his permission to marry Usagi, even though he really didn't like thinking about how that conversation had went.

"I-It's well, I've been pretty busy." Mamoru answered.

"What's the nastiest thing you had to do?" Shingo asked excitedly.

"Were eating, Shingo. That's gross." Usagi mumbled.

"Uh.. I haven't really had to do anything all that gross." Mamoru chuckled.

"If you're so busy, why aren't you at work right now?" Kenji questioned. "I would think that the hospital would certainly be demanding, and you would be working more often-"

"Cause, we have something we want to tell you!" Usagi interrupted.

Mamoru could have kissed her for getting him out of the very awkward conversation, but he was too busy staring at her shell shocked. Maybe he was being a bit naive, but he had been certain they were going to tell them the news a bit later. Maybe, while they were on their way out.. or maybe another day.

But Usagi always managed to surprise him.

"Well, get on with it." Shingo urged.

"I.. we.." Mamoru looked at Usagi for assistance.

Silence.. and then..

"I'm pregnant!" She exclaimed.

Mamoru was fairly certain that sometimes the Earth was out to get him. Like, forget about him every being Prince Endymion, it just had the sole desire to make everything that could go wrong.. go wrong. For example, Kenji had been chewing on his food when his daughter made this shocking revelation and while Shingo's mouth fell open..

Kenji was so shocked that Mamoru was now covered in chewed up food. That would have been fine, but the bad luck didn't stop there. Usagi's hand which had been holding onto Mamoru's tightly was now over her mouth.

"I'm going to be sick." She gasped.

Ikuko, blessed be her name, was quick to grab her daughter's hand and lead her to the wastebasket.

More terrible than the food.. or even Usagi having to go throw up, was the silence between the three guys, accompanied by the sound of Usagi loudly throwing up in the wastebasket.

"I'm so glad I didn't decide to stay the night at a friend's house tonight." Shingo smirked.

Kenji sent his soon a look of disapproval and the boy quickly put his hands up in his defense. Mamoru was stuck between going to see if his wife was alright or staying at the table in this very awkward situation.

His cheeks were the deepest shade of red, and he was desperately wanting Usagi to be near him.. so she could keep her father from killing him. Maybe she could transform into Sailor Moon for old time sake. If she did, there would be another huge shock for her parents.

Luckily for him, Usagi was back at the table a few minutes later. Her face was looking pale and she plopped next to her husband, grabbing a hold of his hand. The both looked at Kenji, who still seemed like he was processing what his daughter had told him. Ikuko took her seat next to her daughter, and the table was once again silent.

It was almost two minutes before anyone talked.

"This is quite the shock-"

"Papa, I'm twenty-one years old." Usagi reminded him. "Mamo-chan and I are married, and we're going to have a baby."

Kenji looked at his daughter, and breathed heavily through his nose. His gaze was that of a father who desperately wanted to hold onto his little girl, and Mamoru felt like he could accept that. He would be the same way towards his daughter when she was born.

"Yes, I know that." He said.

If they were able to read his mind, they would be able to see the struggle Kenji was having. Letting Usagi go was hard, probably the hardest thing he had ever done. Now, the idea of her starting her own family made his heart ache; the knowledge that she wasn't leaving without his approval, made his heart swell in pride.

"I wish you both the best." He said, finally. "I can't wait to meet my grandchild."

Usagi's face broke into a happy smile, and she looked at her mother and then Mamoru. The two of them were smiling just as earnestly. It was a great stress off of her shoulders to have her parents know.

"How far along are you sweetheart?" Ikuko asked.

"Seven weeks!" She smiled. "And she looks like a peanut right now, but I'm sure she'll be the prettiest baby on Earth!"

"She? How do you know she's a girl?" Shingo scoffed.

"I-I.. mother's intuition.." Usagi stammered, "so when's dessert?"

Mamoru wasn't part of this conversation, he was making eye contact with Kenji once again. Only this time, his eyes weren't as cold. They were much warmer, and even though he didn't say anything to Mamoru, the message was clear to him..

_Take care of her._

* * *

**_Thank you so much for your patience! I appreciate it! Anyway, do not fret, the girls will be in the next chapter. Well, most of them. Ami is studying in Merica' but I have a special chapter just for Mercury-chan, bless her heart. Anyway next chapter.. Rei, Usagi, and Minako team up to tell Makoto the news and it will be cute I'm sure._**

**_Review please!_**


	4. The thing about Mako-chan

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon**

**~PLEASE READ~**

**I TOOK A MONTH TO UPDATE AGAIN I'M A DESPICABLE HUMAN BEING. TO be fair it actually wasn't my fault, once again, college stuff.. preparing for it, and looking for scholarships is taxing. Not to mention dad forgot to pay the internet bill so I was out for awhile, because of that. But I'm back, and guess what? I already wrote the next chapter. **

**Just to clear some little things up, Usagi is still 7 weeks pregnant in this chapter. Meaning she's still in her second month. **

**This is just a few days after the dinner with her parents**

**I'm doing my best to keep everything in order, but I'm naturally chaotic so we'll see how that goes. Anyway, I had fun because I really love writing the senshi (especially Minako, because she's just a gem.) **

* * *

"Come on, Usagi, open up!" Minako practically shouted, banging on her best friend's door. "We come bearing gifts, oh pregnant goddess of the moon.. gifts of food for her Majesty."

Rei was glaring at Minako the entire time. If they were lucky, they would be able to escape before the police came. Rei had told her many times that Usagi and Mamoru lived in an apartment, and perhaps banging on someone's door at ten o'clock wasn't the best idea. But, Minako always did the opposite of what Rei told her, of course.

Finally the door opened slightly, and a very tired looking Usagi peeked her head out. She really looked like she wasn't in the mood to talk, and it was a rare occasion that Rei never thought she would live to see.. Usagi not in the mood to blabber on about something.

"The Goddess shows herself." Minako grinned.

Usagi quirked an eyebrow and looked at the box of donuts in Minako's hands. She sighed and opened the door all the way, backing up and letting the girls enter. She was still in her pajama's, a pink bunny bathrobe over her. Minako set the donuts down and she watched as Usagi proceeded to plop face first on the sofa in an exasperated huff.

"What's up, buttercup?" Minako said gently.

Usagi lifted herself up on her forearms and looked at Minako like she had just asked if she was Sailor Moon. Usagi of course pointed to her nearly flat abdomen and put her face back into the cushion.

"I'm amazed that you haven't said a word this whole time, it's a new record for you." Rei stated.

"Talking makes me throw-up, Rei-chan." Usagi replied.

"Well we brought donuts.." Minako said enthusiastically.

"Eating makes me throw-up." Usagi whined.

"But eating is your favorite thing to do!" Minako gasped.

Rei sighed. "Okay, I'm guessing you've been in position since Mamoru left for work. So, you should go get dressed and we'll go do something fun.. anything you want to do."

"I.. don't wanna." Usagi mumbled.

"We'll do something fun, like check out boys! Since your pregnant, it'll make me and Rei-chan look very kind for looking out for our dear friend. Then, we'll all be very happy, because I'm really in the kissing mood." Minako enthused.

"Minako." Rei mumbled.

"Rei-chan, it's not like Usagi is incredibly innocent. I mean, who is the pregnant one here? Do you know what you **_have_ **to do to get pregnant-"

"Oh my God, please stop." Usagi gasped.

"We could always go tell Mako-chan!" Rei suggested. "I mean, we haven't told her yet and I'm sure she would love to know!"

Usagi shot up like a bolt of lightening and nodded her head eagerly. Rei could have sworn she was just whining a minute ago, and now she was back to being incredibly happy.

Oh, this was going to be a long nine months.

"Let me just go get dressed, because I look like a slob!" Usagi said, jumping to her feet and running off into her bedroom.

Rei looked at Minako who was still staring at the spot where Usagi was just whining about being too sick to do anything. Now they could hear the blonde rummaging through her drawers, probably scattering the clothes across the room.

"So, Usagi-chan, are you still up for that whole _help Minako get a boyfriend thing _or.."

Rei cut her off by punching her in the arm.

* * *

Rei was certain they weren't even going to make it to the car. At the last minute, Usagi decided she was in no way ready to go out in public. After promising her that she was ready, she reluctantly agreed. Then there was Minako.

Minako was more then paranoid that Usagi would throw up in her car, and she insisted that the go back up to Usagi and Mamoru's apartment and get a bag of some sort for Usagi to throw up in.

It took a lot of convincing on Rei's part, that Usagi would be fine. Usagi trusted Rei with her life of course, and the only thing Rei had to tell her is that she was psychic so of course she knew these things.

Minako on the other hand..

"Rei, I swear to God, if she throws up in my back seat you are cleaning it." Minako grumbled, watching Usagi through her rear view mirror as she drove. "Usagi-chan, how are you feeling?"

"Good."

"See? She feels great, Minako!" Rei retorted, "will you keep your eyes on the road before you kill us?"

"Hey!" Minako snapped. "I'm an expert, have you ever seen me play racing games, I'm a pro!"

"She is a pro." Usagi confirmed.

"That's a racing game, not real life!" Rei snapped.

"It's a racing _simulator _which is like real life!" Minako smirked.

"Guys.."

"Really, because last time I checked there weren't real cars coming towards you that could _actually _kill you. Also, in racing simulator games, you aren't carrying real life passengers." Rei remarked.

"Guys.." Usagi said again, this time a bit louder.

"I have never even had an accident!" Minako said.

"Yet!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Minako gasped.

"GUYS!" Usagi yelled.

"What?" They both yelled in unison.

"I'm going to be sick." She groaned.

Faster than she had ever moved as Sailor V, Minako slammed on the breaks. Rei, faster than she had ever moved as Sailor Mars quickly reached back to keep Usagi from breaking her neck.

"Hurry puke outside Usagi-chan!" Minako urged.

Usagi smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of her head. "Uh.. I guess I just had to burp. Oops."

"YOU ALMOST GOT US KILLED BECAUSE YOU HAD TO BURP!" Rei yelled.

"Hey, don't yell at me!" Usagi whined.

"I'll yell at you if I want, you baka!" Rei snapped.

* * *

Makoto Kino was just cleaning up her bakery. It was moments like these she cherished, the nice peaceful silence after a long day at work. She loved owning her own bakery, but it was taxing. She enjoyed every moment of it, though. It was her dream.

The silence was soon cut short by the sound of three overzealous voices. She didn't recognize the voices at first, but she knew they were female. She sighed and wiped her hands on her apron.

"I'm getting ready to close-"

She stopped when she saw two childlike grins staring up at her from the other side of the counter, and then Rei, who was glaring at the two blonde's with her arms crossed like they had just killed her dog.

Makoto had missed them.

She hurried around the counter and gathered the two blonde's in her arms, and Usagi had quickly grabbed Rei's arm to pull her into the hug. The dark haired girl complied with a grunt.

"I'm so glad to see you guys!" Makoto smiled, pulling away from the hug.

"Yeah, meetings aren't the same without you and your yummy snacks!" Usagi grinned, she looked at Minako and put her hand up discreetly. "Minako-chan tries to bake goodies, but I always almost break my tooth."

Minako tilted her head to left and gave Usagi a look that said _if you weren't pregnant I would smack you so hard in the face right now. _But she smiled and waved her hand, dismissing the comment.

"It's not like you can bake either, baka." Rei scoffed, putting her hands on her hips. "Good thing Mamoru works in the hospital, because he probably gets food poisoning every time you try to bake him cookies."

"Rei!" Usagi whined, pouting her lips. "That's rude! You're so mean!"

"Like you're not!" Rei snapped.

Makoto chuckled as the two girls went off in their typical banter. She watched in amusement as they stuck out their tongues and made a childish noise, all the while Minako picked at her fingernails impatiently.

She had missed this.

She had to put off every chance to meet up with them because of the bakery. It was sad, they had all been so close once before. With Ami gone to America, and Makoto working hard every day, they couldn't find the chance.

"Why don't I go get you guys some goodies." Makoto smiled.

Usagi swallowed down her disgust at the sound of food, not because she didn't love Mako-chan's baking.. but because she had been feeling so sick as of late the idea of even looking at food made her want to throw up. That was definitely something no one was used to.. Usagi rejecting food.

Minako came through for her friend, and patted Usagi's back sympathetically. "Well, actually, the three of us were going to go shopping.. and we wanted to know if you wanted to join us."

"Yeah," Usagi nodded, "you see I need to find some fabric.. for a baby blanket, I just have no idea what colors I should go with."

"And, you don't know how to make a baby blanket." Rei added.

"That too." Usagi nodded.

"A baby blanket?" Makoto asked.

"Yeah, it's for a friend of ours." Minako nodded.

"Okay?" Makoto said slowly.

"It's a baby girl." Usagi said. "She's already really temperamental.. she's giving her mother a really hard time already, and she's probably going to grow up to be a real brat. You know, I think the color pink would be a great color, because the baby girl will probably just scream _pink._"

Makoto's face slowly grew into one of complete joy as her best friend kept talking, Minako and Rei watched her expectantly. Soon Usagi smiled up at Makoto, and the tallest girl lost it. She lifted her small friend in her arms and spun her around, much like Mamoru did when he found out.

"Okay, I might throw up." Usagi grunted.

Makoto quickly put her friend down. "Oh my gosh, I'm sorry Usagi-chan, are you okay? Is she okay?" She gasped putting her hands on Usagi's belly.

"Eh.. she's fine, the kid's tough." Usagi shrugged.

"How in the world-" Makoto smiled.

"Well you see, Usagi and Mamoru are married, and since they're married they had this magical thing called, sex, and I find it really odd that Usagi somehow managed to lose-"

"Stop it, Minako-chan, we talked about this!" Rei snapped.

"Anyway, I'm two months pregnant, and I really would like that whole baby blanket thing I brought up." Usagi winked.

"Yeah, because if Usagi-chan tries to make Chibi-Usa a baby blanket, the poor child will freeze to death." Rei snorted.

"Hey!" Usagi snapped. "You are being very rude to me today!"

"Oh? Like you're no rude to me everyday!" Rei retorted.

"Name one time in the past week I've been mean to you!" Usagi whined.

"We'd be here for years if I did!"

Makoto watched the two fight, and a smile spread across her face. She had missed this. Now, with Chibi-Usa on her way, she would have to make an effort to be there more.

She couldn't wait.

* * *

**I rushed it a little, I know. I just really wanted to get it posted. I will do better, or at least I will try my best to do better because I'm really not out of ideas, it's just finding time with internet and school is a bit hard, you know?**

**Anyway, I have the next chapter already written (yay me) and I will post it sometime tomorrow.**

**Any mistakes are on me. **

**Please review, also I WILL take prompts. If you wanna give some, but it can't be before however far a long Usagi is. (I.E: I really don't want a prompt where she's 7 weeks pregnant if she is like 28) because, I'm trying to keep everything chronological in order to keep myself from going mad. Which happens on occasions. **


	5. The thing about camping

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon. **_

**I did it! I didn't wait a month to post a chapter (which.. surprise) because I feel bad for going MIA for like a month, so I guess this is my present to those of you who still actually read this. **

**~Please note: this chapter has nothing to do with actual 'in the woods' camping, thanks.~**

* * *

(9 weeks)

If there was anything that scared Mamoru Chiba more than any dark force, it was his wife. Lately, his once sweet Usa-ko was worse than any villain he could ever face. Okay, so.. maybe that was an exaggeration. But she was definitely grumpy. He wouldn't call it hormonal, per se, she was just as temperamental as she had always been. She was just sick (literally), and tired (also literally) and Mamoru was the only man she could take it out on.

He figured it _was_ his fault, but it was partially her fault as well. She did have a big part in it. In fact, if he was completely honest, she was usually the one who initiated _it. _So as far as he was concerned, she had a pretty big part in it.. or at least, that's what he had told her that morning.

"You told her what!" The two nurses gasped at Mamoru.

Mamoru winced and put his index finger to his mouth. The last thing he needed was every female nurse jumping on him because was slightly insensitive to the mother of his child. He really shouldn't have said anything in the first place. He could have easily just took his schedule and left, but no, he had to get some feminine advice and he was paying the price for that.

"Okay, so.. I realize it sounds bad- but I kind of thought she overreacted by throwing her shoe at me." He explained, rubbing the bump on his head where Usagi's winter boot had hit him in the forehead.

"Chiba-san, with all due respect-" The younger nurse sighed.

"You told your wife it was her fault as well.. she should have thrown something bigger at you!" The older nurse finished.

Wow, that was kinda harsh.

"But she did have a part in this, you know!" He said defensively, blushing slightly. Now this was just getting way to personal for a work environment, but then again it wasn't half as bad as what he had overheard these ladies talk about before.

"And she's paying for it- and she'll be paying for it for quite some time." The younger nurse nodded in agreement to her own words. "You, sir, got off quite easy."

Mamoru knew that of course, but he hadn't really thought about it. His poor Usa-ko was so uncomfortable already. She had been sick on and off, but that particular morning had been a horrible one.. and he left her!

"Oh, I am a despicable husband." He moaned, more to himself.

"No, you're just a man, and a first time father. It's not totally your fault." The younger nurse smiled sympathetically.

"So what should I do?" He asked urgently. He had never thought that the nurses station would be the place he would find advice for his problems, but these ladies pulled through for him.

"It's simple, go buy her something she really likes, and be really sweet and sympathetic-"

"And fix her dinner when she feels better-" The older nurse finished.

"And after all of that, just let her tell you how it's all your fault. Don't even think about placing blame on her. Just agree with her, because the insults are only going to get more frequent as the pregnancy progresses." The younger nurse smiled.

* * *

Mamoru did listen to the useful advice of the nurses. After his long shift at the hospital, he stopped by the nearest store and bought every box of junk food he knew Usagi would love to eat. Paying no heed to the exasperated store owner, who was grumbling about getting ready to close up. After buying all of that- which came to an embarrassingly high price- he figured he could just present her with a single red rose. It was his signature flower, super easy to give her one, and it would make her happy.

He didn't listen to the radio on his way home, instead he started practicing on what he would say to his Usa-ko. He wasn't very good with words, and especially apologizing, so he really needed all the practicing he could get.

When he finally entered their apartment, he found it to be quite dark. He found this to be odd because Usagi was usually up waiting for him. When he came home from work, she was usually wrapped in a blanket watching T.V, reading manga, or sleeping.

"Usa-ko?" He called out wearily.

He nearly dropped everything on the floor when he heard Usagi let out a weak groan from the bathroom. He quickly set everything down on the kitchen table and hurried down the hallway, to the single light source in the house. There, he found Usagi kneeling by the toilet, leaning her flushed cheek against the toilet seat.

"Usa, what are you doing?" He asked breathlessly.

"Toilet camping." Usagi grumbled sarcastically, which shocked Mamoru because Usagi wasn't known for her sarcasm. "Wanna join?"

She mumbled to herself, but her mumbling was cut short by a cough.. and then she turned towards the toilet again. Her hands were curled into fists, and Mamoru could only watch.

"How long has this been going on?" Mamoru asked her gently.

"Off and on since you left," she sobbed, "it.. got real bad.. hour ago."

He frowned and stroked her hair, since the only thing he could do was offer his comfort. Usagi hated being sick, so lately she had been pretty upset and he didn't really get that until now. It was hard with his hospital duties and now Chibi-Usa on the way. He wished she didn't have to go through this all by herself, without him.

He kissed her cheek. "Your face is really red, Usa-ko." He pointed out.

"Oh my God, am I going to die?" She cried.

"No." He soothed.

"The baby!" She gasped.

"She's fine." He assured. Usagi would be fine, but she needed to drink something before she became dehydrated. "I'll be right back Usa-ko. Stay right here."

She gave him a look that said _where the hell am I supposed to go? _He winced and gave her an apologetic smile before standing up and hurrying out of the bathroom.

"What?" She cried. "Mamo-chan!"

Mamoru hurried to the kitchen and got Usagi a glass of ice water, he nearly spilled water everywhere trying to hurry back to Usagi. Before going back to her, he walked very carefully to the couch, because of the full water glass, and pulled the throw blanket off of the sofa.

When he returned, he found his wife retching once again. He got on his knees and draped the blanket over her shaking form, and gently ran his fingers through her disheveled hair.

"What are you doing, Mamo-chan?" She whimpered.

"Here, take a drink." Her coaxed, lifting the cup up to meet her lips.

She reluctantly took a sip, and then she plopped her head on the seat almost comically. She took in a shaky breath and her gaze was directed to the scratchy throw blanket draped over her body.

"What's with the blanket?" Usagi mumbled.

"Well, you said we were camping.." he trailed off, "didn't you call it 'toilet camping'?"

"But, you have to work tomorrow." Usagi whispered, but she couldn't stop the tears that were gathering in her eyes from his act of kindness. To think she had thrown a shoe at him earlier that day.

"I'll be fine." He said, rubbing soothing circles on her back.

"But, you're on your knees- in the bathroom- and those are your favorite pants. They'll get dirty." Usagi added, smiling slightly.

"I don't care." He said quickly." I was very insensitive this morning, and I'm sorry."

"I shouldn't have thrown my shoe at you, Mamo-chan." Usagi pouted. "I dunno how you've put up with me for so long."

"I don't know either." He joked.

Usagi huffed and weakly smacked Mamoru on the arm. He had to admit, it kind of hurt. He had to stop himself from rubbing the now sore spot on his arm after she hit him.

"I hate this." Usagi whined.

"Are you telling me that _Sailor Moon, _future _Neo-Queen Serenity- _holder of the silver crystal, and you can't take this." Mamoru chuckled.

"Well, I didn't really choose any of that. It was kinda given to me.." She explained.

"Yeah, but soon enough this part will be over." He said.

"Can't wait." She said sincerely, closing her eyes and gently resting her head on Mamoru's lap.

He was true to his word once again, and he stayed there with her until she eventually fell asleep; he stopped running his fingers through her hair and humming gently, until he heard her soft snores.

He lifted her into his arms and walked to their bedroom, gently placing her onto the bed. He covered her with a blanket and tucked her in, so she was warm. He set the glass of water next to her just in case she needed it, and kissed her forehead.

When he changed into his pajamas and eased into bed next to her, Usagi turned towards him and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"I love you, Mamo-chan." Usagi mumbled.

"I love you too, Usa-ko."

* * *

**Thank you for reading!**

**Please review**


	6. The thing about clothes

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon, because if I did I would never get anything done tbh. **

**~Read cause.. It might make you laugh.~**

**Anyway _holy crap this is why I don't post too many multi-chapter fics, cause I'm a literal turd. Anyway, here is the honest to God truth. I HAD this chapter done like, before Christmas! And I was super happy because I had posted two chapters prior, within a single week! Holy crap! Well, I had this all finished and I had an awesome Holiday chapter (yes, you read that correctly) featuring one blue haired sweetheart (not Michiru, her hair is aqua colored) YES, Ami Mizuno! _**

**_SO, anyway, I had this chapter finished and edited and I added a new document and I was like 'hell yeah, I'm going to finish two chapters' and so I forgot that I had yet to post THIS chapter (Are you keeping up) and I was like, 'oh I already posted this chapter, stupid me.' AND I DELETED IT. HOLY FREAKING CRAP. I was so mad that I proceeded to close my laptop and leave this fic alone for 2 months. Heh._**

**_AND I'M STILL PISSED._**

**_I'll try to remake the glory of the original, but idek. Sorry.  
_**

**_WARNING: We're gonna talk about *gasp* BOOBS IN THIS CHAPTER. BEWBSSSSSSS! Minako is in this chapter making it that much more fun and amusing._**

* * *

Mamoru sighed and knocked on the bedroom door one more time, the bedroom that he and his wife shared. "Come on, Usa-ko, I told you to get ready and you said you were getting ready.." he looked at his watch, "Fifteen minutes ago!"

There was a awkward silence, and then a mumble. Mamoru nearly lost it when he heard his wife's deep snore on the other side of the door. He mumbled to himself and pounded on the door again, of course he couldn't trust her to get up at a decent time. "Usa-ko!"

There was a mumble and then a crash, and then he could hear his wife cursing quite loudly. He held in a chuckle. She had probably almost fell out of the bed when she got a good look at the clock. After that, came the predictable sound of her searching for her clothes.

"Mamo-chan, I-I was just getting ready of course!" She laughed awkwardly. "Just getting ready!"

"Mhm, then what was with the snoring?" He mused.

"Oh.. I snore when I think." She replied.

"That's funny, we've been married for a little more than a year now and I've never known you to snore when you think." He said. "I mean, you grumble sometimes. But snore? Never."

"It was the baby." She replied, he could hear her curse quietly. She probably stubbed her toe on the side of the bed, no doubt. "A pain in my butt, even in the womb. You know her."

Mamoru loved his wife's shenanigans, but on days like these he became a bit exasperated. He looked down at his watch again, and his barely-done tie. It was one of his colleague's birthday, and Mamoru was hoping to be on time. The man was a great doctor, and if Mamoru got in his good graces.. Well that would be great. But, he couldn't do that if he was late.

Usagi was honestly trying to hurry, she really was. Of course, she fell back to sleep. She was tired, and it _**was **_kind of Mamoru's fault. She couldn't sleep on her stomach anymore, and she had to be careful not to hurt the baby while she slept. It wasn't exactly easy for Usagi to sleep in a normal position. So what right did Mamoru have to rush her?

"It's some important doctor's birthday, Usagi.. duh." She whispered to herself, as she searched for her other shoe.

The room was a disaster. Clothes everywhere, and a half-naked Usagi in a desperate search for her other stupid shoe and her stupid bra. Stupid bras. What was the point of bras anyway. She hated bras.

"I hate bras." She mumbled.

Then, like in every big battle, Usagi came out victorious. In her mad search for her other shoe, she had accidently flung her bra- and her shoe, across the room. They were both placed neatly on her dresser.

"Aha!" Usagi cried triumphantly. "Usagi one, clothes zero!"

"Does that mean we can leave soon?" Mamoru asked, she could practically hear the pout in his voice.

"Yes, just let me finish getting dressed." Usagi replied.

She hurried and slipped off her pajama shirt, and flung it across the room. She could always clean up the room later, or Mamoru would probably clean up the room later. She slipped her bra on, and now she just had to clasp it in the back and...

It didn't fit it was too tight.

"What the-" Usagi mumbled.

It was probably the weirdest thing to ever happen to her, because.. well.. she had never been particularly busty. In fact, she hadn't moved up a bra size since she was fifteen. So why in the world was her bra refusing to fit.

Oh yeah, she was kinda currently pregnant.

She disregarded the bra and hurried over to the skirt, she shimmied into it, and clasped it in the back..

Only to find it was too tight as well.

"Oh no.." She whispered. "Oh no.. this is bad."

"Usa-ko.." Mamoru grumbled.

This was so bad! This was the worst thing to happen to Usagi as of late! What would she do? She couldn't go to the party with Mamoru, because what if her clothes burst during the party. What if everyone saw her naked? She couldn't even get her stupid bra to fit? There was no way that she could tell Mamoru about her boob problem, because it wasn't like Mamoru could buy her a bra or anything.

This was a problem for a girl.

And Usagi had one in mind.

Before Mamoru could complain again, Usagi hurried and opened the door, peeking her head out. She looked pretty ridiculous, and Mamoru could see her bare shoulder, and he knew she wasn't dressed.

"You're hair isn't even up." He sighed.

"I can't go." Usagi said simply.

"What?" Mamoru replied.

"I. Can't. Go." She said slowly. "I don't feel well."

"Is this because I rushed you?" Mamoru asked gently. "Look, I'm sorry and I don't mind being a little late. I just don't want to leave you here by yourself if you're mad at me."

Usagi smiled, and patted his hand. "I really don't feel well, don't worry."

"I thought your morning sickness was wearing off, maybe we should go see a doctor if that's the case." He explained.

"No, I think it's something I ate." Usagi said with false sadness. "Maybe it was the leftovers I had last night."

"Well I should stay then, because I don't want you to be sick all by yourself." Mamoru replied.

Usagi had to hold back her frown of annoyance. Damn her husband and his determination to be a great husband one hundred percent of the time. She gave him another reassuring smile and pushed him gently.

"I'll be fine, now go along."

"Are you sure you don't look very good, you're a bit clammy." He sighed.

Oh, Gee, thanks.

Usagi frowned a bit, maybe she wouldn't look so clammy if she could actually get some sleep. "Mamo-chan, stop acting like a doctor and just go have fun. I'll be fine."

"But I am a doctor." Mamoru smirked.

"Yes, but.. not right now. Right now I'm the doctor, and doctor Usagi says that I'm fine." Usagi smiled. "In fact, Mako-chan offered to come over today- and you know Mako-chan, she's good at taking care of people and all that stuff."

"Yeah, she is." Mamoru agreed. "Do you want me to wait until she comes?"

"No, you go have a good time and I'll see you when you get back." Usagi smiled, she pulled him closer and placed a gentle kiss on his cheeks. "Have fun and don't flirt with any pretty nurses."

"I love you." He said, backing away slowly, still a little unsure. "If you don't feel well, you can always call me."

"Of course."

"Goodbye..."

"Goodbye!"

And then he was gone. As soon as the door shut, Usagi went into action. She grabbed her nearest bunny robe from the bathroom, and hurried to the phone. She was careful not to slip on the hardwood floor, because she was all by herself and that would be a disaster.

Technically, she didn't lie to Mamoru. She really was going to call Makoto, and she was really going to beg her to come over. It was, of course, for a different reason.

She quickly dialed Makoto's number, and listened to the phone ring. At the third ring, Usagi was starting feel inpatient. Makoto had promised to always protect her and now when she was having a literal crises, Makoto didn't even answer the phone!

"Hello? Kino Makoto speaking." Came Makoto's cheerful voice.

"Mako-chan, what took you so long to answer?" Usagi practically cried.

"Uh.. It was only three rings?" Makoto replied.

"That's beside the point!" Usagi gasped. "Mako-chan, I'm having an emergency and I really need you to come over and help me!"

"An emergency!" Makoto yelled. "Oh my God, is it the baby? Is it the baby? Do I need to call the hospital! Do I need to call Ami-chan.. I mean, I know she's in America but I will drag her down here kicking and screaming. Is Mamoru-san there-"

"Mako-chan." Usagi mumbled.

"Is he not there? Did he leave you? Is that the problem, did you and Mamoru-san get in an argument? You know I'm not afraid to hunt him down Usagi-chan, I will transform right here and now!"

"Mako-chan, it's not any of those things!" Usagi yelled.

"Oh." Makoto said softly. "Then what is it?"

"My clothes don't fit." Usagi mumbled.

"Huh? I didn't catch that." Makoto said.

"My clothes don't fit, okay?" Usagi whined. "And especially my bras, and I need someone to come over and help me or something or I'll never be able to step foot into public again, and it will be really embarrassing!"

"Sure, I'll be over in a bit." Makoto said simply.

"Thank you, I love you Mako-chan." Usagi practically sobbed in happiness.

"I love you to Usagi-chan.. I'll be over in a bit, just hang tight." Makoto said, hanging up.

If Usagi could count on anyone it was Mako-chan.

* * *

If Usagi ever felt betrayed by anyone, it was Mako-chan.

"What are you two doing here?" Usagi gasped, as a very flustered Makoto walked into the apartment, along with Rei and Minako. "Mako-chan, this is a very delicate situation."

"Calm down. We know about your boob problem, Usagi." Rei smirked.

"Mako-chan!" Usagi whined.

"I-It wasn't my fault, I was on my way out.. and then they were on their way in, and so I told them that you had a problem." Makoto placed her hands on Usagi's shoulders. "They forced it out of me, Usagi-chan."

"I don't see why it's such a big deal, really." Minako shrugged. "It's just boobs."

Rei snickered, and got really close to Minako. "Cause' Usagi's never had boobs before, Minako-chan."

"If I wasn't pregnant, I would smack you so hard right now." Usagi snapped.

"Do it, baka!" Rei replied.

"Guys, can we- can we just you know get this over with?" Makoto mumbled, her cheeks turning bright red. Why in the world did she think this would go smoothly? Nothing ever went smooth.

"Okay, so where are the bras?" Usagi asked, putting her hand out expectantly.

"I'm not giving you any of _**my **_bras." Makoto gasped, placing a hand over her chest as if she was scandalized. "I pay good money for my bras, thank you very much. I just can't give them to you."

"Do you buy fancy lingerie, Mako-chan?" Minako winked. "You know, with the lace and and the silk."

Makoto's face turned bright red. "Minako-chan."

"Anyway, your chest may have gotten bigger, but not as big as Mako-chan's." Rei said to Usagi.

"Er, I don't know Rei-chan.." Minako said, staring at Usagi's chest.

"Stop!" Usagi whined.

"Okay, so here's the plan.." Makoto said finally. "I can always fix your skirts and pants to make them fit, that's not a problem. We'll have to go shopping and buy you some new bras though. But that'll be fun, it will be like old times."

"I don't know what times you're referring to, but I don't remember having to buy bras for Usagi-chan." Minako scoffed.

"She means the shopping, Minako." Rei mumbled.

"Oh.. well then, yeah. Just like old times." Minako smiled.

"But I can't go out in public.." Usagi looked down at herself. "Like this!"

"I think you've became even more over dramatic, if that's even possible." Rei chuckled.

"I have an idea, how about we get a lot of sweatshirts and we just put them over Usagi." Minako explained. "Then, we put some sweatpants on her and she'll be okay to take out into the world."

"That's.." Rei went to say.

"Not a bad idea." Makoto finished.

"But I'll look like one of those middle aged mom's who have given up on life!" Usagi gasped.

"Well, what other choice do we have, baka?" Rei snapped, gently pushing/dragging Usagi to her bedroom.

* * *

"This is so uncomfortable." Usagi mumbled.

Makoto watched as Usagi practically waddled through the store. In hindsight, perhaps Rei had put too many sweaters on poor Usagi. The blonde currently looked like she was suffocating. The other blonde, Minako, wasn't the best person to walk around a maternity store with; Rei already had bright red marks on her forehead from where she had smacked herself.

"Oh my- Look at the size of that lady, Usagi-chan." Minako gasped, poking Usagi in the side. "Do you think Usa will get that big? Holy crap, I would hate to birth a gigantic baby!"

"Minako, for the love of Mars, please shut up before I burn you to a crisp." Rei mumbled.

"Babies are kinda like aliens, aren't they?" Minako mused. "I mean they kind of suck all the energy outta you, you know? And then they take all the nutrients and then they keep it for themselves!"

Rei placed a hand over Minako's mouth before Usagi could puke right in the middle of the store.

When they finally reached the fitting room, Makoto and Rei couldn't be more happy. Makoto handed Usagi a couple bras to put on, and Usagi escaped in the fitting room. Minako had disappeared somewhere, which was a bit concerning. Makoto didn't know if she should be concerned or relieved.

"Guys." Came a mumble, Makoto gasped when Usagi came out of the dressing room. She had become tangled in the mess of sweatshirts, and her shirt under the sweatshirts was pulled up over her belly, showing her barely-there bump. "Guys.. I need help."

"Rei, how many sweaters did you put on her?" Makoto mumbled, hurrying to Usagi's aid.

"Oh you know.. like seven." Rei mumbled, looking down at her nails.

"Hey guys!" Minako gasped, as she ran up to the girls. "Would you still love me if my boobs were this big!"

Rei hit herself in the forehead, one more time. Minako had a way-too-big bra over her shirt, and she currently had her hands on her hips- and her chest out. Why couldn't Rei take her to these kind of places without her reeking havoc.

"Stop hitting yourself, you'll get concussed." Minako said softly.

So Rei hit her forehead instead.

"Okay, I probably deserved that." Minako mumbled, slipping the bra off of her body.

"You did." Rei agreed.

The three girls stood outside the fitting room and waited for their Princess. The three grew quiet as Usagi mumbled obscenities from the other side of the door. It was truly an awkward silence.

So of course Minako was the one to break it.

"When we were fourteen, did you ever think that one day we would have to help Usagi pick out a bra cause she's knocked up.. Like, did you ever think our duties would stretch this far?" Minako chuckled.

"Nope." Rei said honestly.

"Never." Makoto added.

"Uh-uh.." Came Usagi's mumble from the other side.

They grew quiet again.

"Um.. this one's a bit too small." Came Usagi's sheepish reply from behind the fitting room door.

"Really?" Makoto mumbled.

"Yeah."

"Hey, Mako-chan, what if Usagi wears the same bra size as you.. wouldn't that be funny!"

"Yeah, whatever." Makoto laughed.

* * *

Rei couldn't have ever foreseen this. She had foreseen a lot of surprising things, and she could scope out evil like a pro. But she could have never seen this coming, not ever. Not even in a thousand years.

The four girls sat in a booth. Usagi sipped happily on a milkshake, while the other girl's settled with just a water. It was nice to see Usagi's appetite back, even thought the other three girls sat in shock.

At least Usagi was comfortable.

"Uh.. so.. I was right?" Minako finally said.

"You were right." Rei agreed.

* * *

_**Sorry if that was rushed and crappy, sorry. I have a really good chapter planned, and I will actually get to that. It will be featuring.. Ami-chan, because I couldn't go this whole story without sweet Ami-chan! **_

_**Anyway, funny story, when my sister had her first son she went up THREE bra sizes. She was always really.. for a lack of a better word, flat-chested and she went up three bra sizes.**_

_**I was nine at the time and I found it HILARIOUS, and we went out to steak n' shake and I couldn't shut up about it . I was a lot like Minako in that aspect XD**_

_**please review. **_


	7. The thing about presents

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon**

**_SO I actually started writing this one after I wrote the last chapter, so please know that if I don't post in a month I gave a valiant effort. _**

**_No warnings._**

**_I'm skipping a few weeks.. cause, I have nothing else planned really for the first trimester_**

**_So in the next chapter it's the SECOND trimester which means yay, Usagi shenanigans! _**

* * *

_(13 weeks) _

If there was anyone who enjoyed her sleep more than Usagi, it was Minako. Although, unlike Usagi, Minako sleep without a baby taking that away from her. That's why Minako would be happily without children for awhile. She would much rather have a super fine boyfriend who she could take to red carpet events, and live in a really nice flat with her.. sipping wine, and enjoying the pool.

Usagi was into the domestic stuff..

But not Minako.

The blonde smiled in her sleep, and brought her pillow closer to her chest. She mumbled a bit; she was dreaming of releasing her first album. Everyone was yelling her name. They were all clapping for her, yelling for her..

Minako.

"Minako, Minako... Mina-ko..." Minako mumbled to herself.

She didn't hear her phone ring, until Artemis got tired of the noise and hurried to Minako's room to see why she wasn't answering the phone. He sighed when he saw her mumbling her own name in her sleep.

"Minako!" He yelled, jumping on his owner.

"W-WHAT?" Minako gasped, sitting up in a hurry. She glared at her white cat, who in return glared back at her. He treated her like this even after she begged her landlord to let her keep him, and even let Luna stay once in awhile.

"The phone.." He said pointedly.

"Oh!" She gasped, she quickly picked up the phone. "You're speaking to Aino Minako."

"Hello, Minako-chan." Said a soft voice on the other end.

"Ami-chan!" Minako smiled. "Hey, Ami-chan how's America? You know you promised to send me a lot of pictures, and I have yet to see any of those pictures. How in the world am I going to know everything about America?"

Ami giggled. "I'm sorry, Minako-chan.. But I have good news!"

"Spill." Minako replied.

"Well, I'm coming back to Japan in just a couple of days." Ami explained. "I'm staying for good, and I thought it was very convenient that it's so close to the holidays."

"That's great Ami-chan!" Minako said enthusiastically. "Did you let the other's know?"

"I've already spoke to Rei, and I tried calling Usagi-chan but she didn't answer.. I'll call her back in a bit." Ami explained. "How is everyone? I haven't had the chance to speak to you guys in awhile."

"Oh, everyone is great!" Minako smiled, the blonde was unaware that someone was about to barge into her home. She had no idea, so she continued on. "Mako-chan has her own bakery where she sells amazing food, a-and Rei-chan is an intern at this really fancy business place, I'm on my way to becoming and idol, OH- and Mamoru-san is a doctor, but you knew that already.. BUT, guess what? Usagi-chan.. Usagi-chan is-"

She was tackled at that time. In her enthusiastic discussion with Ami, she was unaware that Rei Hino had made her way into her house; now the blonde was squealing as her head was being pushed into a pillow. Rei was on top of the blonde, with one hand on the phone, and the other forcing Minako's head down. Artemis stared on in pure confusion, but he didn't dare interrupt whatever he was looking at.

"Usagi-chan is going to be Queen of the Earth!" Rei said breathlessly, she let out an awkward chuckle. "But you already knew that!"

"Rei-chan?" Ami replied.

"Yeah, I was just going to take Minako-chan.. out.. to eat!" Rei lied. "Anyway, I can't wait to see you in a couple of days. I'll be there at the airport bright and early. Okay? Okay. Bye-bye."

She hung up the phone.

She finally got off of the struggling blonde and rolled off her bed, onto her feet. Minako stayed face-first in the pillow for a couple more minutes. Slowly but surely, she turned towards Rei with a look of pure anger on her face.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?" She screeched. "ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME!"

"You're the baka who was going to spill the big surprise!" Rei snapped. "Usagi-chan is pregnant? Are you kidding me, that's the perfect gift for Ami-chan. She will be so happy, and it's too special to say over the phone!"

"Oh." Minako said in a guilty tone. "Well, I didn't know Usagi-chan wanted to surprise Ami-chan."

"Well.." Rei trailed off. "Usagi, doesn't exactly know she's going to surprise Ami-chan yet."

"Okay, so you smothered me for NOTHING?" Minako snapped.

"I did not smother you for nothing." Rei rolled her eyes. "Usagi-chan will be all for it when we tell her the idea."

"But what if she calls Usagi-chan, and she tells Ami-chan?" Minako asked.

"Oh.. shit." Rei grimaced. "We have to go tell Usagi!"

* * *

The atmosphere in the Chiba household had been a lot less tense as of late. Mamoru knew it was because of Usagi nearing the second trimester of her pregnancy. He was happy to once again see his cheerful, healthy wife. She had a lot more energy these days, and she was definitely a lot less sensitive. Although he knew those raging hormones would appear again eventually; he appreciated her happy demeanor while he could.

He chuckled to himself as she mumbled some song from the kitchen, although he knew she had the words entirely wrong.. it was charming. His Usa-ko was very charming.

"I did it, Mamo-chan!" Usagi squealed. "I made a cookie that would make Mako-chan proud!"

"Do you want me to taste?" Mamoru asked, looking up from his glasses.

She was certainly a sight to behold, with her wayward apron and her messy hair; she had flour smeared on her face, along with a bright smile that Mamoru couldn't resist.

He would eat any cookie she offered to him.

She hurried and sat next to him and thrust a plate with two cookies in his face. In her other hand she had a glass of milk, which she placed on the coffee table in front of them. He looked at the cookies. They looked a little burnt, but he had learned never to judge a cookie by it's looks.

"Okay, so try one." Usagi said excitedly. "Do it, do it, do it!"

Mamoru laughed and grabbed a cookie from the plate, he slowly took a bite. His experience with Usagi's cookies hadn't really been the best, but she had improved in a lot of things over the years. Why couldn't cookie baking be one of those things?

And he was truthfully surprised. The cookies were soft to the bite, and didn't almost break his teeth. It was actually pretty tasty. The look on Usagi's face was worth it as well, and he nodded his head in approval.

"This is good." He said honestly.

"Yay!" She clapped. "Mamo-chan likes my cookies."

"And you said they were homemade?" Mamoru asked.

Usagi's smiled fell off her face a bit, and she itched the back of her head laughing. "Well, they were going to be homemade and then.. it got really late so I decided that I would just get the cookies that come in the package.."

Mamoru raised an eyebrow and smirked. "So you lied." He joked.

"Well.. technically.. yes." She mumbled, but she smiled up proudly. "But the other's don't have to know when we have the party in a couple of days!"

The holiday party was Usagi's idea. Mamoru was still trying to figure out how everyone was going to fit in the apartment, of course it wasn't tiny. But it was just enough room for Mamoru, Usagi, and eventually Chibiusa.

"You want me to condone your lying?" Mamoru gasped, faking scandalized. "I don't know if I can do that!"

"Oh, come on.. please." She begged, putting on her best puppy dog face. She tried to wrap her arms around Mamoru, but he turned away. "Please, Mamo-chan, Please. Please. PLEASE!"

She squeaked as he pulled her into his arms and fell back on the sofa, Usagi on top of him. She giggled and kissed his nose gently, of course he would condone a little white lie, right?

"I married a liar." He said with fake sadness. "A liar."

"Aw, come on." She pouted, she fell back into his arms gently, careful of the baby. "You know a white lie has never hurt anyone, and what they don't know, won't hurt them."

He placed her hands on her small bump. "Do you hear that, Usa? Your mama is a liar, she wants your papa to lie for her."

Usagi put her hands on top of his. "Usa, that's not true and you know it. Who are you going to trust, the man who doesn't wake up when mama has to pee.. Or your mama, who is feeding you and taking really good care of you."

"You have me there." Mamoru said.

"Of course I do." Usagi smiled.

"I feel like we're interrupting something..." A voice trailed off.

Usagi would have fallen off of Mamoru's lap if it wasn't for her husband quickly grabbing her arm. They both quickly stood on their feet, only to see Rei, Minako, and Makoto standing by their front door.

"What the.." Mamoru mumbled.

"Do you ever knock?" Usagi asked, rubbing her temples.

"We knock when we're not under a serious emergency!" Minako exclaimed, hitting her fist against her open hand with a look that screamed 'serious emergency'.

"And.. I was honestly pulled into this." Makoto said quietly.

"Ami-chan was going to call you," Minako rolled her eyes, "we had to get you out of there."

"It's really not that big of a deal, and I'm honestly regretting my decision to bring Minako into this.." Rei spoke up.

"So are you guys going to tell us what this emergency is about?" Mamoru asked.

"Well, Ami-chan is coming home in just a couple days," Rei began, "and I have an idea!"

"An Idea?" Usagi asked excitedly. She was now all for this plan that she knew nothing about. "Please tell me more."

"Well, Ami-chan doesn't have any idea that you're pregnant, so why don't we surprise her or something?" Rei suggested. "It would be way more special than just telling her over the phone."

"Ami-chan is a softy." Makoto agreed.

"You're a softy, Mako-chan." Minako smiled, poking her now blushing friend in the side.

"Okay, great.. but how do we surprise her?" Usagi questioned.

"Well- I - I haven't quite planned that out yet, unfortunately." Rei replied quietly.

In a surprise role reversal, everyone but Rei smacked themselves in the forehead instead. Of course Rei would get everyone all excited and interested only to not have a plan figured out.

"Oh! I got it!" Minako said excitedly, raising her hand as if she were in school. "We get a bow, and we put on Usagi.. and then- Tadah! A present for Ami-chan!"

"No, no, no." Usagi shook her head. "Last time you had an idea it left me feeling uncomfortable with way too many sweaters on, and I still haven't recovered from that."

"Huh?" Mamoru asked, genuinely confused.

"N-Nothing." Usagi giggled awkwardly.

"How about we just put an ultrasound of the baby in a box and wrap it, and then give it to Ami-chan as a _coming home _gift." Mamoru shrugged, as if it were nothing.

"That's a great idea!" Rei agreed. "Do you have any ultrasounds of Usa, Usagi-chan?"

"You bet your butt I do!" Usagi said proudly.

"Well then it's settled, operation _welcome home Ami-chan _is a go!" Minako exclaimed.

Just then the phone rang, everyone simultaneously looked at the phone as if it were a bomb about to explode. No one moved to answer, especially not Minako, who had just been tackled that morning.

"Act normal, Usagi-chan." Rei ordered quietly.

"How do I act normal?" Usagi whispered.

"Why are we whispering?" Makoto asked, although she whispered herself.

"I'll answer it." Mamoru said exasperated.

* * *

Soon Usagi's holiday party turned into a welcome home party for Ami. She didn't complain though, she loved welcome home parties more than she liked sleep. Although she found going away parties to be tough, she was all for welcoming people back.

The next few days flew by very fast. It consisted of the three girls going out to buy decorations for Ami's welcoming party, helping Mako-chan at her bakery so they could get started on Ami-chan's welcome home cake (even though, according to Rei, Usagi did more eating than she did helping), and Makoto teaching Usagi how to bake a proper cookie.

Minako, Usagi, and Makoto were now busy wrapping the gifts that they had picked out for Ami. Actually, Minako and Makoto had finished early... and Usagi was a little behind them.

Now, they only had to wait. The plan was for Rei to pick Ami up from the airport bright and early and entertain her until afternoon, when Mamoru would be home.

It was the afternoon, Mamoru was home, but Usagi still didn't have her present wrapped.

"Usagi-chan, are you almost done?" Minako grumbled.

"I'm trying but I'm not really all that great at wrapping presents, you know." Usagi pouted. At least a dozen tape pieces were stuck on her fingers, as she tried to concentrate on properly wrapping the gift.

"Do you need my help?" Makoto asked, impressed and proud at how hard Usagi was trying to wrap the present on her own.

"Nope." Usagi shook her head. "I want it to be special."

Finally, Usagi finished wrapping her gift. She lifted it up in the air as if it were her newborn child. It was sloppily done, and some of the box could be seen, but it was special and there was no doubt Ami would love it.

"They're coming." Mamoru said urgently, hurrying into the room.

Minako grabbed the present, that Usagi was still holding in the air, and put it with the other gifts. Mamoru, Minako, and Makoto hurried and hid when the voices of Ami and Rei became more and more present. Poor Usagi wasn't informed about the hiding places, so she was forced to hide behind the couch.

There was a knock on the door, and Usagi looked around to see if anyone was going to take the initiative and let them in.

"Come in.." Usagi said hesitantly.

The door opened and in came Rei and Ami, and then...

"Surprise!" They all yelled simultaneously.

Ami smiled her earnest as her friends jumped out to welcome her home. She looked around the apartment, at the decorations and the presents. She felt like she could cry.

"Welcome home, Ami-chan!" Usagi squealed, hurrying to pull Ami in her arms.

"You guys, thank you!" Ami smiled.

"Well, what better way to welcome you home then with a welcome home party." Makoto said, patting her friend on the shoulder. "Sorry if we seemed a little weird on the phone."

"It all makes since now." Ami laughed.

"You have presents, Ami-chan." Minako said, gesturing to the presents. She was excited about Ami finding out about their princess being pregnant; she was excited to see the look on her face. "We all picked you out a very special gift."

"I kinda already gave her my gift when I picked her up." Rei said sheepishly. "I couldn't resist."

"It was very special, Rei-chan." Ami nodded, sticking her wrist out to show the others the bracelet that Rei had made for her. She reached in her bag and pulled out an envelop. "Before I open your gifts, I have some gifts to give you guys as well."

"They're just photos, but they're meaningful." Ami explained, she reached out and gave a stack of photos to Usagi. "I took some pictures of some tasty food I ate, and some small trinkets I found while in America."

Usagi gently took the pictures and smiled. "Thank you Ami-chan, these pictures will make me happy whenever I'm really hungry and can't get to food."

Ami giggled at her friend's words. "For Minako-chan, I took various pictures of some landmarks I saw while overseas. So now you won't get lost when you're famous and you're touring in America."

"So this is why you didn't send me any pictures, thank you Ami-chan." Minako winked.

"For Rei-chan I took some beautiful pictures of skyscrapers and some architecture of some old buildings I saw, I thought you would like it." Ami explained. "And for Mako-chan, I had the opportunity to visit some great restaurants and bakeries."

"Thank you Ami-chan." Both of the girls smiled, hugging Ami.

"And Mamoru-san, I have some pictures of some medical text I read while in America- and there are some interesting findings that I knew you would love." Ami smiled, handing Mamoru his photos.

"Thank you." He smiled.

"Now for your presents!" Usagi said excitedly.

Ami loved the presents that Makoto and Minako had given her; they were both very personal, which was very special to Ami. Minako had given Ami a demo that she had recorded in the studio and Makoto had baked and decorated a beautiful array of Ami's favorite desserts.

"Thank you guys, Minako-chan I can't wait to hear your beautiful voice- and Mako-chan, you know how much I can't resist your baking." Ami commented, gently setting the gifts aside and reaching out to grab Usagi and Mamoru's gift.

"It's not very well wrapped, but I thought you wouldn't mind." Usagi said a bit sheepishly.

"It's perfect." Ami smiled.

They all fell quiet as Ami began unwrapping the gift. She was so much unlike the rest of them when she unwrapped gifts. She unwrapped the present gently and slowly, and it was a bit nerve-wracking when everyone was dying to see her reaction.

Finally, she opened it.

Her eyes widened a bit when she saw the lone picture lying at the bottom of the box. She slowly picked the ultrasound up and looked at it intently.

"Usagi.." Ami said slowly.

"Yes?" Usagi replied just as slowly.

"This-is-" She whispered. "Chibiusa?"

"Yes." Usagi nodded.

Then in a gesture that was so unlike Ami Mizuno, she stood up and pulled her friend into her arms. Usagi eased into the hug, and embraced her friend. Even though Rei Hino would deny it, she had tears threatening to fall down her cheeks.

"Group hug!" Minako called.

Everyone, including Mamoru, encircled both Ami and Usagi in their arms. It was a great moment, now they were all there. The girls who had fought together, and the man who'd always fought alongside them.

They were celebrating the future.

Ami pulled away, and wiped her tears away with her sleeve. "I'm sorry I missed so much guys. I'm sorry I wasn't here when you first found out."

"You're here now, and that's all that matters." Minako smiled.

"We love you Ami-chan." Makoto said.

"And you were following your dreams!" Usagi added. "In plus, I'm only thirteen weeks, you have a lot of time until she gets here."

"I love you guys!" Ami let out a watery laugh.

"I love you too, Ami-chan.. and I love group hugs," Usagi hesitated, "but Mako-chan's food is just calling my name and I'm eating for two."

Ami had missed them.

* * *

**_~~Read Please~~_**

_**I actually am really proud of this chapter (*ga**_**sp* whaat?). _When I think about what Sailor Moon is about, I honestly think friendship. I really loved writing this chapter with all my girls in it (yes, the outers will come soon. Don't you worry). _**

_**As for the presents Rei was a bit har**__**der I think, and Mamoru. Usagi, Makoto, and Minako were easy for me, but I'm not so sure about Mamoru and Rei.**_

_**But Ami-chan is here now and now Ami-chan will join in the shenanigans (I really, really love that word if you can't tell). **_

_**Also please forgive any weird grammar I may have had. I did take a french final today and it's super hard for me to get out of French mode.**_

_**Please review**_


	8. The thing about the future

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon**

**_Okay, so it's been a little over a month.. I KNOW, I know. And I'm sorry. Are you ready for my excuses? Well one, it was my birthday on the 20th of March, so any plans of writing were ultimately thrown out the window, two.. I was juggling between this idea and something else.. Three, I got really REALLY into Frozen again and started writing a fanfiction and I was so into it and I kinda wrote like.. 4 chapters. oops.  
_**

**_So to make up for it? I will respond to your reviews! Yay!_**

_SSTrans- Thank you! I'm happy Ami is here as well, life without Ami is just boring. You're welcome for the update, and I apologize for the lack of update._

_maryyorke- Thank youu!_

_fergnerd- I have a plan with the outers, maybe later. But I'll bring the outers in, even Setsuna. Even if she is the Guardian of Space and Time and knows all about Chibs._

_Wonderwomanbatmanfan- Yes, at least the inners are. We still have some more of the gang, but I'm going to take a little break from the 'I'M PREGNANT!' aspect of this story and focus on other things!_

_godloverk- Mamoru's friends, well I can't really think of anyone other than Motoki (who will get his very own chapter.. eventually) But there's always Mamoru's parents, and that's going to be a sad chapter._

_Leann Foster- Thank you!_

* * *

_(14 weeks) _

As Usagi reached the second trimester of her pregnancy, it finally dawned on her that she was.. well, pregnant. Not that she didn't realize this before, but now that the actual euphoria of telling everyone was wearing off, she found herself shocked with the actual realization that she was going to be a mother. That the little girl she had watched grow into a brave guardian, would be back to stay, and this time for good.

She would be lying if she said that didn't scare her.

Not that she didn't love Chibi-Usa with all her heart, because she did. But her relationship with Chibi-Usa had been, at times, difficult. The child had seen her more as a sister than a mother. Of course, it hadn't bothered Usagi at the time- but now that she was getting closer to becoming a mother, Usagi was starting to worry about how her relationship with Chibi-Usa would actually turn out.

She didn't tell these fears to Mamoru, because he had enough worries- and she didn't need to stress him out even further. And she couldn't tell the girls because, no matter how much she loved them, she didn't know if they would quite understand.

So, she kept these thoughts to herself.

But they were always there, especially in the morning- when she would get dressed a catch a s glimpse of the small bump in the mirror- and she would remember that soon she would be a mother.

Sure, it was a beautiful realization, and she was excited. But she wasn't like other mother's, she had met her daughter before she was born. She had bickered with her almost every day, and as trivial as Chibi-Usa's words had seemed at the time, they were hurting her now.

Like how she was selfish, lazy, and _stupid_. But she had grown up since then.. Right? Would that be Chibi-Usa's automatic opinion of her mother, would she see her as an incompetent woman?

What if she **_couldn't _**be like the mother Chibi-Usa had idolized so much?

Usagi breathed in heavily trying to rid herself of these thoughts as she passed the park a few blocks down from her and Mamoru's apartment. It had become sort of a ritual for her to go on morning walks with Luna on the days when Mamoru left for work early. She stopped just in front of the park when she spotted her neighbor, Akiko, and her small daughter Sayuri walking down the sidewalk. The little girl smiled brightly when she spotted Usagi, and waved her hands.

Usagi smiled slightly and waved back.

"Oh, hello Usagi-san." Akiko smiled. "What are you doing out this morning?"

"I'm following my.." Usagi went to point to Luna, and saw that the feline was now ahead of her by quite a bit. "Cat. My cat gets out sometime and I have to get her to follow me back home."

Sayuri tugged on her mother's dress, and the woman looked down to her child. "What is it, sweetheart?"

"Can we go get ice cream?" She asked quietly.

"Yes, dear." Akiko looked up to Usagi once more. "Well, goodbye, Usagi-san."

"Goodbye." Usagi smiled

She watched as the mother and daughter continued down the street, the smile soon fell off of her face. She felt a pang of jealousy as Sayuri grabbed her mother's hand, and leaned against her. Her own hand subconsciously found it's way to her abdomen. She grimaced slightly, Akiko was luckily. Akiko knew her daughter loved her.

She wasn't thrusted into motherhood backwards, she's never held her daughter in her arms while she disappeared, and she never had to watch evil get it's claws in her daughter and turn her twisted..

Another one of Usagi's greatest worries. How was she supposed to look at her daughter and know that one day she would turn into black lady. One day, Usagi would become Neo-Queen Serenity, and she would have to be a Queen first, and a mother second.

She feared even if she tried to prevent it, she wouldn't be able to.

"Usagi, are you coming?" Luna asked.

Usagi continued to gaze in Akiko and Sayuri's direction; she was oblivious to Luna's words.

"Usagi-chan!" Luna said again.

"Hm?" Usagi asked, looking at her cat. "I'm sorry, I wasn't listening.."

"Are you okay, Usagi-chan?" Luna asked. "You've been out of it all day."

Luna looked at her owner with worry, she had been unnaturally quiet that entire week. Part of her pinned it on the fact that Mamoru had been working late for several days, and when he wasn't working late.. he was paged in due to an emergency.

As much as Luna would love her company to be enough for Usagi, there wasn't anything she could do to help Usagi's loneliness from Mamoru's absence. Especially now that Chibi-Usa was on her way.

"Yeah, I'm fine.. Luna let's head home!" Usagi said with a smile.

* * *

As much as Usagi insisted she was okay, Luna knew something was up. She still remained uncharacteristically quiet, and spoke only to respond to Luna's questions. Other than that, Usagi placed herself on the couch- with her hand resting on her abdomen. Her gaze seemed to be in a far away place, and Luna was beating herself up.

Years with Usagi and she couldn't tell what she was feeling anymore. Was it because of the criticism she had given her while she was a teenager? The teenage years were crucial to how adolescence viewed themselves as adults.

As day moved into night, Usagi had moved only to eat, use the bathroom, and shower. Luna had watched her carefully, looking for any signs of what could be wrong with the princess.

When Usagi yawned, Luna dragged a blanket from the bedroom for Usagi to cover up with. The blonde gave her a very tired _thank you _and rested her body on the couch. Luna yawned as well, curling up in a ball on Usagi's legs.

They both remained quiet.

"Hey, Luna." Usagi mumbled.

"What?"

"Didn't you think Akiko-san is a good mom?" Usagi asked.

Luna sent Usagi a strange look. "Well I guess, I don't really think we have enough information on either of them to determine that. But, yeah, from what we saw she's a pretty good mom."

"Sayuri-chan looked at her mother with such love.." Usagi said so quietly it seemed like she was speaking more to herself than Luna. "I hope I can be a good mother like that."

"Usagi-chan.." Luna said sympathetically. "You will."

Usagi stayed quiet once more, and Luna was under the impression that she was contemplating her next answer. It wasn't until she heard Usagi's soft breathing, that she realized that she had fallen asleep.

* * *

As much as Luna tried to convince herself that she would fall asleep too, she simply couldn't. Her eyes remained on Usagi, who was unnaturally quiet- except for the small mumbles that appeared at random intervals. Usagi would furrow her eyebrows and clench the blanket, and turn abruptly- nearly sending Luna onto the floor.

But Luna endured it, and stayed in that position until Mamoru walked through the door hours later. She perked her head up when he walked in; he shut the door with caution and slipped off his shoes.

He didn't notice Luna until he turned to look at Usagi.

"Hello Luna." Mamoru whispered.

Luna didn't say anything, but merely nodded her head in acknowledgment. She watched as Mamoru walked over to Usagi and smiled to himself, smoothing her bangs down with his hand.

It was done with so much affection, Luna found it hard to believe that she had once lacked so much trust for his feelings regarding Usagi. Looking at him now, she could see how much love he held for the girl sleeping on the couch, and the baby within her.

"Did she wear herself out?" Mamoru asked quietly.

"She- I think she may be hurting." Luna explained.

"Hurting?" Mamoru said, a bit more loudly than he would have liked.

"Not like that, she's just stressed about something." Luna explained.

Just then, as if on queue, Usagi cried out in fear. She struggled under the blanket, finally knocking Luna off of the couch. The cat landed swiftly on her feet and looked at Mamoru who was already springing into action.

He was no stranger to nightmares, and he certainly wasn't a stranger to Usagi having nightmares. After the battle with Galaxia, the blonde had horrible nightmares. Sometimes she would be so afraid that she would try to go days without sleeping.

The nightmares had become little over the years, but this was how they all started out.

He turned on the lamp next to the sofa, and fell to his knees in front of his wife. He gripped her narrow shoulders, trying to keep her from hurting herself or the baby, because she had a tendency to hit when she had nightmares.

He shook her gently. "Usa-ko, it's just a nightmare. Wake up please."

Usagi whined and shook her head, and Mamoru gripped her shoulders gently once more. He was begging her to wake up and calm down before she harmed herself. Finally, Usagi opened her eyes and sat up quickly, nearly falling off the sofa when she did.

"Mamo-chan." Usagi sobbed.

"It's okay, Usa-ko." Mamoru whispered in her ear, placing a strand of misplaced hair behind her ear.

"S-She was evil Mamo-chan." Usagi sobbed. "Chibi-Usa was evil, a-and it was all my fault. There was nothing I could do to save her. All b-because I was a bad mother, Mamo-chan."

"It was just a nightmare, and you need to breath Usa-ko, it's bad for the baby." Mamoru instructed.

Usagi did as she was told; she took in a ragged breath, and tried to blink back the tears that continued to run down her cheeks. "B-But it's really going to happen though, Mamo-chan.. We saw the future."

"Yes, and we also saw that she was able to be saved.. by you." Mamoru said gently. "And the future isn't set and stone, Pluto told us this. We'll do our best, Usa-ko.. If something goes wrong, we have each other."

"But she's going to _hate _me, Mamo-chan." Usagi whimpered. "Chibi-Usa thought I was lazy, and stupid, a-and.."

"And she looked up to you." Mamoru interrupted.

"You were her hero, Usagi-chan." Luna agreed. "She looked up to you, and Sailor Moon was her hero. Chibi-Usa loved you."

"Yeah, and as I recall she may have clung to me. But when she was hurt or sad, she always turned to you, not me." Mamoru continued.

"But I'm scared, Mamo-chan." Usagi whispered. "I'm really scared."

"So am I." Mamoru chuckled, placing his hands on his wife's growing abdomen. "I'm terrified, actually. But I know that we'll be the best parents we can be, and we'll be there for her, even if we make mistakes."

"How can we be proper parents, when we're destined to be King and Queen?" Usagi asked.

"The same way working parents take care of their children." Mamoru responded. "Chibi-Usa will feel lonely at times, and maybe she'll be upset. And maybe when can't completely change what's going to happen, but we can do our best. Like you said, we've seen the future, and we know everything will work out. You and I have been through so much more difficult times."

Usagi fell into Mamoru's arms, and resting her head on his chest. Mamoru, in return, chuckled wrapping his arms around her and burying his face in her hair. She always had the ability the jump back from trauma, and take words to heart. Which was both a blessing and a curse, depending on the words and the person.

"It's okay to be afraid?" Usagi asked, sounding more like a little girl than a 21-year-old woman.

"It's fine." Mamoru reassured.

Usagi was afraid, she was terrified. But she was also afraid when she became Sailor Moon; she had begged and cried for Luna to let her go home. It was hard, and there were times where she just wanted to scream and cry, and give up. But from becoming Sailor Moon, she had met her best friends and matured more than she thought she ever could.

She figured becoming a mother would be the same way.

* * *

_**I'm so sorry for how late this is.**_

**_Please review :) _**


	9. The thing about flutters

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon.**

**Ah, so many reviews. I honestly feel so unworthy, because I am the worst at updating. I'm truly trying, but I just turned eighteen and I'm in my senior year of high school, so everything is a bit hectic right now with my entrance exams (ugh) and filling out scholarships (double ugh), so PLEASE stick with me because I am trying. The hope, dream, and prayer is that I get this done Friday night (I made this statement on 4.8.15) and then take my French entrance exam on Saturday, and then begin thinking/writing a new chapter and hopefully finish by the next weekend.**

**But not everything goes as planned, so I'm trying. **

_**wonderwomanbatmanfan- Of course! Usagi is the brightest star in the galaxy, she'll make a fantastic mom.**_

_**SSTrans- Whew! I'm so glad you liked the end, I kept going over it with my cousin because I thought it was too cheesy. Thank you.**_

_**Saiaino23- I was very worried about how I wrote Usagi's feelings about being a mother. I, myself, have not had a child- but I do know how worthless my sister felt at times, and I have anxiety and often have feelings of inadequacy, so I kept what my sister told me and my own feelings in mind while writing. Thank you :) **_

_**maryyorke- Thank you, there will be more Usamamo insecurity talk, because Mamoru will experience anxiety about becoming a parent. **_

_**Vchanny, Godloverk, hopelessfreakz- Thank you :) **_

_**LunaHaruka1- Ah, thank you :) I will try to update, even if I seem a little bad at it, I don't give up that easy. I love writing cute Usamamo moments, and thank you for noticing Minako's antics, because I love writing Minako. If I had to pick a favorite character after Usagi, it would definitely be Minako. She's truly something else, that Goddess of Love and Beauty.**_

_**ALSO PLEASE READ:**_

_**This chapter may be a bit smaller compared to the others, but please note I said a series of long-ish drabbles, this is where that ish comes in. This is a bit of a filler for me, because I would like to get this in because, I have something big for the next chapter (hint: features the inners, mamoru, and Usagi's family.. so yeah) **_

* * *

_(16 weeks) _

Usagi Tsukino hated reading- okay, that was a lie. Usagi loved reading as long as pictures were involved, pictures and very little kanji. Okay, so maybe she preferred to read manga over books with just words. Books without pictures made her think of learning, and learning made her think of standing in the hallway- and standing in the hallway made her think of being scolded by her mama. So yeah, she generally hated reading.

But, she figured she would make an exception. When Ami-chan had gifted her with a book telling her all the things she and Chibi-Usa would go through week by week, it made her feel a lot better. She figured Mamo-chan had said something to Ami about her current nightmares, and books were Ami's specialty. Books are the presents that Ami gave people when they are feeling down, and Usagi was truly thankful for that for once.

"Hey, Mamo-chan, did you know she's actually starting to hear my voice?" She called to Mamoru, who was currently situated at the dining room table, reading away at some important doctor papers. "Isn't that adorable?"

"Ah, now she can finally feel what I go through." Mamoru called back jokingly.

"Eh, Mamo-chan, that's rude!" She whined pitifully. "Have you and Rei-chan been teaming up, because that sounded like something she would say!"

Mamoru smirked to himself as he turned a page, he could hear his wife mumbling to herself and flipping the page from the other room. He smiled as she predictably took in a deep breath and squealed to herself. It was adorable how amazed she was of being pregnant, her childlike wonder had always made him smile.

"She's the size of a.." She paused, "avoca-do?"

She hummed to herself. "Mamo-chan, what is that? Is that like a carrot?"

"No, Usa-ko, it's in no way shape or form, similar to a carrot."

"Good, cause I hate carrots."

"I know you hate carrots, Usa-ko." He chuckled.

She grew quiet, and he continued with his work. It went on this way for quite some time, but soon enough, her mumbling started up again. He looked up from his paper and assumed that perhaps she had fallen asleep and was talking away to herself like she usually did. But, no, these words were actually coherent, unlike her sleep talking which consisted of stories about flying bunnies and massive carrots chasing her through Tokyo.

"..And there was this one time that you and I had to go to the dentist together, because we had cavities.. and the first time, the dentist was really awesome and had candy and all that great stuff- but then turns out it was kinda evil, but you'll know all about that later. Anyway, so we ended up going to the real dentist, and he filled our cavities, and we survived."

She paused.

"I'm still scared of dentists though, but even if I'm scared of dentists I would go through a thousand dentists to protect you." He could practically hear the smile in her voice, Usagi's very own way of saying _I love you more than anything. _"You know maybe, you don't really understand me right now, cause you're only the size of an avoca-do.. whatever that is, but the book says you'll remember my voice, and well your papa is a big meanie and he said that you were unlucky. So that's why I'm talking to you now to show you just how lucky you are."

He leaned against the doorway, and watched his wife, who was lying to sofa talking to the baby who could now hear her voice. He knew Chibi-Usa was lucky, probably the luckiest child in the world to have a mother like Usagi. A woman who would lie on the sofa and have a full blown conversation about scheming dentists and mean papa's, as if she were talking to a best friend who was sitting right beside her.

How was she even real?

"Mamo-chan?" Usagi said quietly, her voice growing uncharacteristically serious.

"What?" He asked, concern prevalent in his voice.

"I think.." She started. "I think I just felt her move, but it felt kind of funny."

"Well, I think your about at that point, Usa-ko." He smiled. "You very well could have."

She sat up quickly, and reached for the all-knowing baby book as if his word were no longer enough for her. She flipped through the pages, until she found the right page. He watched her face went from happy, to happier, to _ecstatic._

"I DID!" She squealed.

She stood and ran to him, with her smaller hand she grabbed his, and lifted up her shirt with her other hand. He had to contain a laugh, as she put his hand on her bump and looked up at him expectantly, even though he wouldn't be able to feel the baby for himself until a few more weeks.

"Usa-ko.."

"Ah-Ha!" She giggled as she pulled away, taking his _'Usa-ko' _as a _'I feel the baby too'. _"Ha, Mamoru-baka. You said that Chibi-Usa was unlucky to hear my voice, but here she is moving around in there.. To _my _voice!"

He smiled as she danced around the room, in deliberate steps, careful not to trip and hurt the baby she so dearly cared for. He smiled brightly as she quickly went to find the phone and tell the girls, her mama, and anyone else who she could find in the phone book and care to listen.

Eventually he would tell her that he wouldn't be able to feel the baby for a few more weeks..

But right now his Usa-ko was _glowing._

* * *

_Please review. I'm actually pretty happy with this, even though it is short._

_Please forgive that :) _


	10. The thing about bets

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon :)**

_Thank you for all of your kind reviews! They are so kind and they honestly make me smile. I just really love Mamoru and Usagi and part of the reason I wanted to write this so badly is that I believe that they've been through so much they deserve happiness, even if it there is some sadness at times :) Because, of course, all happiness is found by enduring sadness. _

_Happy news in my life: I was awarded a $12,000 scholarship, and I'm really excited and I wanted to share that with you guys!_

**_This is a bit of a silly chapter with an underlying message of angst (you'll see what I mean) nothing too bad. _**

* * *

_(18 weeks) _

"It's a girl.."

"I'm so happy and surprised," Usagi sobbed in a dramatic fashion, placing her hand over her forehead theatrically. "This is the biggest surprise, I'm so glad the world gifted me with this child- I've always wanted a little girl!"

She looked up at her friends, who were staring at her like she was crazy. She blinked a few times, and Minako shook her head in silent disapproval. It had been Usagi's idea to _practice_ her reaction for when she was told the sex of her baby. She had insisted that she come off at least slightly surprised, so she didn't seem unemotional or suspicious.

So for the second time that night, Rei very _enthusiastically _stated the sex of the baby- and Usagi tried, and failed, to act more than surprised at the fact that the baby was a girl.

"Was it bad?" Usagi asked.

"Terrible."

"Lame."

"You're a baka, Usagi."

Ami simply shook her head.

"Then we have to try again!" Usagi said with a look of determination, slamming her fist against the palm of her hand.

"_We?" _Rei scoffed. "_WE, _don't have to do anything but judge your reaction. See, there was a reason why you were the Evil Queen when we did _Snow White _and the moon when you in Chibi-Usa-chan went through that ballerina kick.. because _you _can't act."

"Anyway, Usagi-chan, it's no big deal if you don't come off as surprised." Makoto interrupted before Rei and Usagi could start fighting. "I mean it's not like their going to think, _'oh she's not all that surprised, she must have met her child before she was born or something..'" _Makoto explained.

"Mako-chan makes a good point." Ami agreed.

"Yeah, why is acting surprised such a big deal? If you already know she's a girl, why do you even want to find out?" Rei asked

"But it's gotta be special, and even if I'm certain the baby is Chibi-Usa, I have to know for sure.. Not to mention, It's a very important moment, and I want to be a normal mother who is surprised when she finds out her baby is a girl," Usagi whined, taking a handful popcorn from the bowl next to her and pouting. " In plus, Mama and Papa are really excited and I gotta act like I'm surprised as well."

Minako placed a hand on Usagi's shoulder. "You will be surprised, I'm sure of it, Usagi-chan."

"And you get to see Chibi-Usa-chan, isn't that going to be amazing enough?" Rei smiled.

"Yeah," Usagi smiled, placing her hand on her abdomen. "She looks like a sweet potato, apparently."

Rei smacked her forehead.

"Uh.. you mean, she's the _size _of a sweet potato." Ami giggled.

Usagi looked at Ami like she was processing exactly what she meant; she stayed like that for a little bit and then broke out into a giggle.

"How have you managed to become even more strange?" Rei mumbled.

"Can you believe my papa has a betting pool going." Usagi informed, grabbing the popcorn bowl and changing the subject from how clueless she was. "I guess he and Shingo are under the impression the baby is a boy, and my mama, of course, thinks the baby is a girl. Who would bet on something so silly?"

The girls stayed silent, eyes fixed on the floor.

"What's wrong?" Usagi asked.

"N-Nothing.. it's just silly.." Rei mumbled.

"Did you.. Did you guys join my papa's stupid bet!" Usagi squealed, flinging her hands up and sending popcorn flying in the air. "That's not even fair, because you know that the baby is a girl!"

"We just wanted to.." Minako muttered.

"Join in the celebration?" Makoto finished.

"You didn't join in the bet, did you Ami-chan?" Usagi asked, staring at her dearest friend and finding herself utterly disappointed when Ami's eyes were fixed on the ground as well. "Not you you too, Ami-chan!"

"Oh, I'm so ashamed!" Ami squeaked, burying her face in her hands.

Usagi crossed her arms over her chest and stared at her friends with looks of disapproval. It was just like them to take advantage of meeting Chibi-Usa before she was born and placing a bet. It was probably Rei's idea, no doubt.

"It was even Ami-chan's idea!" Rei stated, as if she knew about Usagi's accusation.

"AMI-CHAN!" Usagi squeaked.

Ami let out a small whine, and buried her face deeper in her hands. Her cheeks were bright red as she was outed as the mastermind behind this whole ordeal. It really wasn't hard to do considering Kenji Tsukino didn't mind letting them be part of his bet, and he was convinced the baby was a boy. When all four girls chose to bet that the baby was a girl, he was ecstatic.

"One of you have to change your bet.." Usagi said simply.

"I am not changing my bet!" Minako said rather loudly. "I call not changing my bet, I worked hard on it!"

"We all have the same bet, baka!" Rei snapped.

"I'll change it." Makoto said suddenly, everyone turned to look at her as if she had just volunteered to give her life. "I'll do it, for you Usagi-chan."

"Thank you, Mako-chan." Usagi smiled.

Just then, Mamoru walked in. He stopped at the door, as he was not expecting to see the girls and Usagi sitting on the floor this late. The girls turned to look at him, and he was looking at the popcorn mess that was currently his living room floor.

"Mamo-chan, can you believe that the girls placed a bet on the sex of the baby?" Usagi told her husband.

"Ah, Kenji-san's bet?" Mamoru nodded his head. "I hope one of you are planning on changing yours, because I'm keeping mine."

"Mamo-chan!" Usagi gasped.

* * *

Usagi hated waiting rooms. She thought they were far too.. tidy. Of course, they had to be tidy, she knew that. But there was something about the smell that made her nose burn. It was too clean smelling, almost unnatural- and it was boring to wait for someone to call your name. She looked around at the other women in waiting room; they were all quiet and reading magazines like they were supposed to.

She looked down at her hands, she had been biting her nails for the last fifteen minutes. She raised her hand to her mouth once again, but before she could even begin to chew on her nails- Mamoru grabbed her hand.

"Why are you jittery, Usa-ko, it's just a check-up.." Mamoru whispered.

She furrowed her eyebrows and looked at him. There were a lot of things to be jittery about, there could be something wrong with Chibi-Usa, the baby could end up not being Chibi-Usa. There were a lot of things to be worried about.

He understood.

"Usa-ko, if there was something wrong.. you would know." He smiled.

"Chiba Usagi." The kind voice of the technician called.

Mamoru stood, still holding onto Usagi's hand and expecting her to stand with him. He turned to his wife when she didn't budge. Usagi pouted and stood, her hand gripping Mamoru's even tighter than before.

"Are you nervous?" The technician smiled kindly.

Usagi merely nodded.

"Why don't you follow me?"

Usagi's hand never left Mamoru's, and he didn't mind. He knew she had a deep fear of the dentist and doctors alike. If he was being honest with himself, he was nervous as well, but for a different reason. Everything was good, they were happy. They were finally a family, and the baby they had been waiting for was well on her way. So yeah, they were more than happy.

In the past, happiness had never lasted this long.

He figured life after fighting evil would always be this hard for them.

The technician guided Usagi to the bed, and he sat down beside to her, her hand still holding tight to his. He knew Usagi wouldn't let go until she knew everything was okay with the baby.

At least it wouldn't be like the first appointment, where Usagi nearly passed out at the thought of having her blood drawn. He had thought he was going to have to carry his wife out when he saw how pale her face had looked.

But then again, she looked pretty pale now.

"Okay, can you please pull your shirt up for me, Usagi-san?" The technician asked politely.

Usagi nodded and lifted her shirt up, revealing the bump of her abdomen. She winced slightly as the technician applied the cold gel, and he thought she would break his hand when the nurse pressed the transducer to her belly.

It was quiet in the room except for the crackling of the machine. Mamoru watched Usagi's face, through the darkness of the room, as she kept her eyes strictly on the screen. Waiting for the first image of Chibi-Usa to appear.

She didn't have to wait for long.

"There's your baby." The technician pointed out.

"Wow.." Usagi whispered.

"Everything is looking normal, there's the head.." She pointed, she moved the the transducer over a bit. "There's the heart, it's beating strong."

Mamoru was awestruck at the image of their daughter. It hadn't seemed real until now. Sure, they had talked about it and prepared. But now, she looked real. He could see the outline of her tiny body, and the small flicker that was her heartbeat. He could feel, tears threatening to fall down his face, as his hand met Usagi's once more.

"Is the baby okay?" Usagi asked urgently. "Is the heartbeat okay?"

"The baby is fine," She chuckled. "Would you like to know the sex."

Usagi looked at Mamoru, who in turn smiled down at her knowingly. It was good to be sure, Chibi-Usa was the child they were expecting. They had to make sure it was really her in there, even if Usagi was certain beyond a shadow of a doubt.

She was her mother after all, she knew it was her.

Usagi nodded.

The technician adjusted transducer once more, and she grew silent. Which in turn, made Usagi more nervous then it should have. "Well, the baby seems to be hiding a bit.. but it looks like the baby is.."

_Please say girl.._

"A girl," She smiled, "congratulations."

"Ahh, it's her Mamo-chan!" Usagi said giddily, her eyes welling up with tears. "It's really her!"

"I take it you were hoping for a girl." The lady giggled.

"Something like that," Mamoru chuckled, kissing his wife's forehead.

* * *

They were both up for a shock when the exited the hospital; Usagi was staring at the sonogram of the baby, and Mamoru was watching her face brighten with every minute she continued to gaze at the picture.

There was a crowd outside outside the hospital.

The couple stopped, and Usagi tilted her head slightly to the left. The girls were there, all of them staring at Usagi and Mamoru expectantly. That wasn't anything out of the ordinary, but her parents were there too. Her father staring at her with a look of anticipation, her brother- who looked like he didn't want to be there at all, and her mother who was staring at Kenji with a look of embarrassment.

"What in the world are you guys doing out here?" Usagi asked.

"Is it a boy?!" Her father asked, rather loudly, gaining some stares from the people who were going in and out of the hospital.

"Papa.." Usagi trailed off.

"Should we tell them, Usa-ko?" Mamoru questioned his wife.

Usagi looked at her father; he was going to have a panic attack if they didn't tell him. However would he last until June. They couldn't just keep the baby's sex from him, Usagi shrugged and smiled slightly.

"Eh, why not?" Usagi smiled.

They both looked at each other.

"It's a girl." The said simultaneously.

Everyone cheered.

Even Usagi's father, who after the initial cry of, "_I can't believe I lost my own bet,"_ changed into a cry of _"I'm going to have a granddaughter." _Her mother smiled knowingly, as Kenji pressed his sobbing face against his wife shoulder and Shingo patted his back gently. The girls walked over to the couple; Rei was the first one to pull Usagi in her arms.

"Were you surprised?" She teased.

"Very."

* * *

**_Read, please :) _**

**_So you may be asking: 'wasn't it kinda pointless since they already know Chibs is a baby girl.." Well_**

**_Ahem,_**

**_I think what I was honestly trying to point out here, is that despite her many years fighting evil.. Usagi still longs to be normal. She wanted to be normal, and find out the sex of her baby as if she didn't already know it. She wanted that desperately. _**

**_In plus, deep down, even if she convinces herself that she's for certain the baby is Chibi-Usa, there's always that fear that it isn't. That there's something wrong._**

**_I imagine that would feel a little bit like losing Usa, even if she wasn't technically born._**

**_Does that make sense, cause I hope it does :/_**

**_Please review_**


	11. The thing about carrots and pudding

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon**

_**I began writing this chapter on 4/24/2015**_

_**SSTrans &amp; SeleneJade- Thank you both so much! :D I always enjoy your reviews. **_

**_kera69love- I have things up my sleeve, don't worry ;) _**

**_maryyorke- Ah, yes, Ami-chan. We all know that Ami-chan is more mischievous than she lets on; it's always the quiet ones XD_**

**_Leann Foster- Thank you, and good luck on your scholarship. I have a cousin who tutors English in Kyoto. She loves it :D (and I love it because she always brings me back snacks when she comes to visit). _**

**_serena princess 2- That sounds really cute! I'll have to see if there is a way I can fit that prompt in my story. I'll do my best!_**

**_Thank all of you for your very kind reviews! :)_**

_The thing about Carrots and Pudding may sound a bit silly but it was actually one of my favorites to come up with! _

* * *

_(20 weeks) _

Mamoru was excelled at a lot of things, and sure, it may come off as conceded but there was some major truth behind it. He had graduated top of his class, and was exceptional at mathematics even at a young age; this was even more impressive considering he grew up in an orphanage where doing well in school was the least of anyone's worries.

He could do other things too. Chess? He was a pro at chess, he couldn't actually beat Ami- but, Ami was above average at everything. Cooking? He was actually _great _at cooking. Since Usagi couldn't cook to save her life, Mamoru had taken on himself to learn how to cook, with the help of Makoto. It was pretty easy after several rounds of burnt food.

So yeah, Mamoru was good a lot of things.

But not.. _everything._

For starters, Mamoru didn't have much patience- something that proved to be a hassle when you had a sweet but pregnant and temperamental wife. He had made Usagi angry quite a bit in those twenty weeks, and he was sure there was more to come.

Also, Mamoru wasn't a people person.

Unlike Usagi who didn't excel in a lot of things, but understood people more than Mamoru ever could. He considered that some kind of magic, and far more valuable than intelligence at times. Usagi could meet a person and charm them instantly, with her kind eyes and her cheerful demeanor. Even if she made a bad impression, she could somehow manage to fix it in a snap of a finger.

Usagi was something special.

Mamoru?

Mamoru couldn't do that. If Mamoru made a bad impression, or said something insensitive he had a hard time fixing it. The only person who had forgave him for his insensitivity was Usagi, but she was full of forgiveness.

Or so it seemed..

Okay, in hindsight, perhaps Mamoru shouldn't have said what he said; he could have totally just minded his own business and everything would have been fine. But, Mamoru was a doctor, and he was also a doctor by heart. He was also a big fan of eating healthy and exercising regularly, two of Usagi's least favorite things to do ever. So.. that set up a disastrous scenario.

She had been eating a lot that day, but not actual full meals, but random snacks in big portions. He hadn't said anything, but when he walked in the dining room and she had somehow come up with the idea that dipping a cookie in whip cream and then in ice cream was a good idea.. he couldn't help himself.

Okay? Yeah.. he should have known. But he really just wanted the baby to be healthy, and for Usagi to be healthy, and everyone be healthy. But, once again, Mamoru wasn't exactly a people person and he **_somehow _**didn't see this coming.

"Is that your dinner, Usa-ko?" He asked hesitantly.

Usagi cocked her head to the side, spoon still in her mouth and nodded her head quickly. She pulled the spoon out of her mouth and gave Mamoru a cheesy grin. "Yes, Mamo-chan, I think Usa would like ice cream for dinner tonight."

Mamoru chuckled and shook his head. "I think Usa-ko would like ice cream for dinner, and Usa has to agree."

Oh.. he was an idiot.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Usagi asked slowly, increasing her grip on her spoon.

"Oh, nothing." Mamoru just shook his head. "It's just that, maybe you should try to eat a bit more healthier? It's important you know for the baby, and for you.. Maybe eat less junk and more veggies."

He was the biggest idiot who ever lived, screw what he said about being intelligent he really wasn't.

Usagi placed her hand on her chest defensively. "I eat perfectly fine, thank you!" Her eyes started filling up with tears, and Mamoru was once again reminded just how stupid he was. "Are you saying I'm fat?"

"What? No! I-I would never say that!" Mamoru gasped, his eyes fell to her baby bump which he had found more and more adorable. Due to her stature, she had shown a bit earlier. "I mean, y-you have a belly, because your pregnant you know? But t-that's not fat, it's a baby-"

He was an idiot, and he barely missed the empty ice cream carton that she had thrown at his head.

"Fine if that's how you feel, Mamoru-baka!" She wailed. "You can sleep in the couch, and if you excuse me, I'm going to take my _unhealthy _body to bed, by myself!"

Did he mention he was an idiot?

Usagi slamming the bedroom door reminded of that fact with a sense of finality.

* * *

Mamoru smiled to himself happily, crossing his arms across his chest. He was a good husband, he really was. Despite sleeping on the sofa and having a horrible back ache, he had woke up extra early in order to make it to the supermarket before Usagi woke up (which wasn't hard, considering Usagi refused to wake up before noon on most days).

Due to sleeping on the sofa without his wife's warmth and sleep talk, he was able to stay up all night and contemplate what he was going to do to make up for his insensitivity. He realized, of course, the way to Usagi's forgiveness was through food.

So he had bought his wife cups of chocolate pudding, and carrots for himself while he was at it. After all, he was in the mood for a nice carrot every now and again.

"Mm, what's this Mamo-chan?" His wife yawned.

Mamoru turned to Usagi, who was standing in the doorway, staring at her husband skeptically.

"Well, I felt bad for hurting your feelings, and I was really insensitive." Mamoru explained. "SO, I made it up to you by going out really early this morning.. and I bought you some snacks. There is some chocolate pudding, and some fruit if you want it.. maybe?"

Usagi stayed silent, and Mamoru smiled nervously.

"Oh, Mamo-chan, you're so sweet!" Usagi smiled.

She hurried to hug Mamoru, and he embraced her and placed a kiss to her forehead.

"But I don't like carrots." Usagi said, pulling away from Mamoru and scrunching her nose in disgust.

"The carrots are for me.." Mamoru said.

"Oh, good cause I hate carrots Mamo-chan."

"I almost forgot!" Mamoru said suddenly. "I left you something in the car!"

"You did?" Usagi questioned.

"Yeah, I'll be right back okay?" Mamoru said. "You both just hang tight!"

It wasn't an exaggeration to say that he left Usagi alone for less than three minutes. He hurried down to his car, and grabbed the bouquet of flowers he had picked up for his Usa-ko. After that, he had hurried back to their apartment, and was shocked when he found Usagi..

Eating carrots.

No, really, she was eating the carrots he had bought for himself.

She was humming to herself as she took the carrot, dipped it in the pudding, and took a bite with a huge grin on her face. Mamoru stared at her in shock, and she was so overcome with euphoria because of her new treat that she almost didn't notice him.

"Usa-ko?" Mamoru mumbled. "Usa-ko, are you eating carrots?"

Usagi turned to him, chocolate spread across her face, and she smiled as nodded her head enthusiastically. "Did you know Mamo-chan.. that carrots and pudding is actually a good mixture!"

"No.. Usa-ko, I didn't know.." Mamoru muttered.

"It's really good, and I don't even like carrots!" Usagi smiled.

"My carrots.." Mamoru whispered.

* * *

Usagi had been in an exceptionally good mood that entire day. She snacked on carrots and pudding all day, and had even allowed to Mamoru to once again sleep in the bed with her that night. It was a very good day, and a very good night, and everyone was happy..

Well, almost..

It was late at night when Mamoru felt his wife poking at his side. He muttered to himself and turned over, and he could almost hear Usagi huffing in displeasure. He should have woken up as soon as he didn't feel her holding on to him, her belly pressed against his back.

"Mamo-chan," she whispered, "wake up."

Mamoru shot up quickly and looked at his wife, who was also sitting up. He, being himself, automatically thought the worst. He looked over at his wife who was perfectly fine despite the frown on her face.

"What's wrong?" Mamoru gasped.

"I really _really _would like some carrots and chocolate right now." She whined.

Mamoru narrowed his eyes, and quickly turned his head to look at the digital clock by their bed. It was one in the morning, in order to even purchase more carrots and chocolate for his wife, he would have to find a 24-hour Supermarket.

"Usa-ko, I'll buy you more in the morning.." He yawned, laying back down, and closing his eyes.

She stayed silent for a bit, but soon she leaned over and pressed a gentle kiss to his cheek. He groaned out of frustration, when she rubbed his shoulder and rested her head on that same spot.

"I love you, Mamo-chan." Usagi whispered.

"Fine!" Mamoru groaned.

He wrapped his robe around himself sloppily and slipped on slippers, not caring that that they may not have been his.. or that he was going out in public. He only cared about getting this weird snack his wife enjoyed so much, and getting his much needed rest.

* * *

Turns out, Mamoru had accidently put one of Usagi's slippers on, along with his cheesy tuxedo mask slipper. He had simply looked down at the the slippers and shrugged. He couldn't bring himself to care, what kind of people went to the grocery store at one in the morning? People who didn't care, that's who. He walked in the store, and the clearly exhausted clerk greeted him, not paying any mind to his current get up.

Mamoru couldn't bring himself to greet him back. He was exhausted, he hadn't had any sleep the night before, and tonight seemed like another night without sleep. Finding the carrots wasn't very difficult. He simply grabbed the bright orange carrots that were void of any spots, and placed them in his shopping basket. He was halfway done already!

He walked down the aisles and stopped when he saw the last box of chocolate pudding just feet away from him. His face lit up, soon he would be home, and his wife would be happy, and he would be asleep. Oh, yes, this would be great!

He practically ran to the last box of chocolate pudding, sliding in his silky slippers. He went to grab the last box, when another hand grabbed it as well! Mamoru looked up, appalled.

The man was balding, and clearly a good twenty years older than Mamoru was. Also, unlike Mamoru, the man was well dressed. He looked down at Mamoru as if he were less of a human being for being dressed in pajamas. Mamoru was half tempted to tell the man that he was a doctor, but he wasn't sure the man would believe him.

"Excuse me, but.. I need this." Mamoru snapped, pulling the pudding towards himself.

"Not as much as I do, boy.." The man responded, pulling it towards him. "I have a dinner party just tomorrow, and I need this pudding for my famous pudding pie. I would hate to let my guests down."

"Listen, my wife is pregnant, and she just wants carrots and pudding, okay?" Mamoru snapped. "She just wants carrots and pudding, and I'm pretty sure my pregnant wife is more important than your dinner party!"

"It's not my fault your wife is pregnant!"

"Well it's not- okay, well actually it's partly my fault she's pregnant, but that's beside the point!" Mamoru was begging now. "Please, please, just let me give you money or something for this box of pudding.. I'll give you anything!"

"Anything?" The man repeated.

"Anything!" Mamoru practically whined.

The man looked down, and Mamoru followed his gaze to his tuxedo mask slipper. He looked back in the man's eyes and shook his head, surely he wouldn't? The man smiled.

"You know, I'm a big fan of that mysterious Tuxedo Mask- I used to have both of the slippers but I seemed to have lost my left one.." The man explained, "and you seem to really need this pudding."

Mamoru sighed and slipped off his slipper giving it to the man.

The man gave him the pudding in return for his slipper.

"Thank you."

The man turned on his heel and walked away and a very tired, very disheveled Mamoru Chiba was left to watch as the man who just took his slipper walked. But at least he had the pudding.. right?

RIGHT?

"Tuxedo Mask wouldn't like you!" Mamoru called to him angrily.

The man didn't seem to hear him, and Mamoru grumbled to himself and hurried to check out his items, with only one slipper on his foot.

* * *

When Mamoru arrived home with the groceries in his hands, he was shocked to see the dining room light on. Mamoru rubbed his eyes with one hand wearily and walked to the source of the light, where a persistent crunching noise was coming from.

Mamoru dropped the grocery bags when he saw Usagi snacking on carrots but this time she was happily dipping the carrot in peanut butte. Mamoru watched his wife with a look of dismay, as he tilted his head in confusion.

"Oh, Mamo-chan, did you know that we still actually had some carrots in the cupboard and that carrots taste even better with peanut butter?" Usagi smiled. "But thanks for the extra carrots Mamo-chan."

Mamoru fell to his knees.

"Mamo-chan.. a-are you crying?" Usagi asked urgently.

Oh, what a night.

* * *

_**Poor Mamo-chan :( **_

_**This was more of a silly chapter but I liked coming up with it and writing it!**_

_**Please review!**_

**_Just an update: May is going to be a really hectic month for me, I have an AP exam to study for and finals coming up in about four weeks. Not to mention next Saturday is my senior prom, so please forgive me if it takes a bit for me to update this story._**

**_But I will! Don't worry :D_**


	12. The thing about 'goodbyes' and 'hellos'

_Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon_

**_This is a Mamoru-centric chapter. Cause' Mamo-chan needs some love :) Of course Usagi (and Chibs) will be in it too, because you can't have this story without them, right? _**

**_But it's been brought to my attention that Mamoru needs some angst(?) and, ask and I shall deliver of course. Usagi got to tell her parents, and it's only fair that Mamoru tells his too.._**

**_Oh, yeah, I'm going there._**

**_FYI, my prom is this weekend, and on Sunday me and my bff are going to go to an amusement park. Next weekend I must be a good student and study for my AP exam. Sorry. _**

* * *

_(22 weeks) _

Ikuko and Kenji Tsukino delved into their role as grandparents with delight. Mamoru would come home to Usagi sorting through packages of tiny footy pajamas and tiny socks for a tiny infant. She would sort through knitted blankets, and little t-shirts that said things like 'I have the world's coolest uncle!" (From Shingo, of course). Usagi would cringe at some things and put it to the side gently, as if not to offend her parents.

She would usually fall asleep on piles of unsorted baby clothes, and it would become Mamoru's task to carry her to bed. He would look back at the pile with a slight gaze of discomfort; he should help her. He should sort through all the things like a father would. That was something they should be able to do as expecting parents. But Mamoru, as selfish as it sounded, couldn't bring himself to do it.

Maybe if the clothes were from one of the girls, or Naru, or even from Motoki.. He could have done it. But they were from Usagi's parents.. Chibi-Usa's _grandparents. _

Mamoru was jealous, so jealous.. as jealous as a father could be.

To be put it bluntly, Mamoru's parents were dead. He would never be able to see their faces when they revealed that they were expecting a girl, he would never be able to watch his mother's delight as she placed her hands on his wife's belly and waited for the small flutters that confirmed that there was indeed a baby in there. They would never be able to send their unborn grandchild clothes or knitted blankets..

They couldn't do that because they were dead, and Mamoru couldn't even remember what their faces looked like; he couldn't even imagine their faces. The only thing he knew of his parents was where they were buried, and **that** was all he had to hold on to.

Mamoru never took that out on Usagi. It wasn't her fault. She would heir on the side of caution when it came to gushing about what her parents had purchased for Usa. He could see her bite her tongue, and send him a apologetic smile.

She was too kind, and he couldn't even allow her that small amount of happiness.

He stared down at her in guilt as he slipped off her other sock, and placed the blankets over her. She was smiling now, and he knew it was from her parent's enthusiasm.

He should have been just as delighted as she was.

But he hadn't even told his parents yet..

Then, the thought struck him as he eased into bed next to Usagi- gathering her in his arms. He could go and visit them, and properly tell them.. He had done it a couple times before; He had told them about being Tuxedo Mask, about Sailor Moon, and about some annoying bun head who wouldn't stop hitting him on the head..

He pressed a kiss to the top of Usagi's head.

This was something he had to do.

* * *

He woke up early the next morning, thankful that Sunday was one of his days off. He looked over at the clock, and sure enough it was early, and Usagi would stay in bed. He could even slip back into bed before she woke up.

But Usagi always zigged when he expected her to zag.

He paused in the midst of buttoning up his coat, when he heard the rustle of the covers behind him. He turned around slowly, hands still fumbling with his buttons. She was staring up at him with a look of confusion.

"Mm, what are you doing Mamo-chan?" She yawned. "I thought you were home for the day."

He cleared his throat, and picked out his next words carefully. What was the point of lying anyway? She, of all people, wouldn't judge him for getting some closure with his parents.

"I'm- uh- going to see my mom and dad.. Usa-ko." Mamoru said evenly.

Usagi's gaze softened and she nodded her head solemnly. Her hand found it's way to her belly and she nodded once more, staring down at the sheets. When she looked up at him, he felt bad from trying to keep it from her in the first place.

"Can I come, Mamo-chan?" Usagi asked.

He shifted on his feet awkwardly. Oh, yeah, this was why he kept it from her. Not that he didn't want her to come, he truly didn't mind. But part of him, the part of him that was still stuck between opening up and keeping his emotions hidden, didn't want her to see him upset. She had always been the more emotional one, but Mamoru.. Mamoru could never afford to be emotional.

"I'll stay in the car, I promise.." Usagi continued. "I just don't wanna be alone."

He hated emotions, and she hated being alone.

They were perfect for each other.

"Yeah, sure." Mamoru nodded, a small smile making it's way on his face. "As long as you help me pick out a nice bouquet of flowers."

"Okay!" Usagi said enthusiastically, but her face soon grew disappointed. "But I'm no good at flower arranging, Mamo-chan.."

"They're already pre-arranged. I know of your failed attempts at flower arranging." Mamoru chuckled, his mood had seemed to change drastically at the thought of her company.

When life grew a bit too dark, Usagi was a welcome change.

* * *

Ironically, it was a rainy, chilly Sunday. Mamoru found this somewhat appropriate. He didn't visit his parents' graves very often; a total of three times to be exact. All three times it hadn't seemed that important, and he had been more insecure; more of a little boy than a man. A boy who had grew up in an orphanage, and taught that it was more important to keep your feelings to yourself than to show them.

Then he met Usagi, who could express every emotion at once. He had found her a nuisance at first, of course. He didn't understand her. It turned out, he had been jealous of her. She could freely express everything without a care in the world.

She was so alive, and that had annoyed him.

He looked over at Usagi, who sat quietly in the passenger seat, her head resting against the window. He could see her gaze follow a lonely raindrop as it traveled down the passenger window. She was holding the bouquet of flowers they had picked up at a nearby flower shop.

It was quiet between the two, the only sound was that of the windshield wipers.

As he pulled up to the cemetery, his heart seemed to fall to his stomach. He looked over at her once more, and he was almost tempted to tell her that he changed his mind.. she should go with him. She stared at him expectantly, and he shook his head.

He didn't want to cry in front of her..

This time was different. This time he wouldn't be standing at their graves, shifting on his feet, digging for things to tell them. He wouldn't clear his throat and give an awkward goodbye before turning and walking to his car..

No, he was happy now. He had things he needed to tell them.

"I'll be back, just.. hold tight." Mamoru told Usagi.

Without another word, he got out of the car.

Even though it had been a few years since he had visited them, he still remembered exactly where their graves were. He seemed to be on autopilot, as if he weren't really in his body. It was as if he was being led to their graves.

Half way to their graves, he shifted out of autopilot when he remembered that he had left the flowers with Usagi. He turned around, contemplating whether or not he should go back and get the flowers. He decided it against it; the car was already out of sight.

He had forgotten his umbrella too, he thought bitterly as he shivered.

He shivered more when he approached the two graves, side by side, with the name _Chiba _engraved on them. He was out of autopilot again, as he approached the grave. He was dragging his feet behind him now, almost like a small child getting punished. He stopped in front of their graves, and cleared his throat. He was wishing that had turned around to get those flowers now..

"Hello mom and dad." He started awkwardly, looking around to make sure no one could hear him. "Sorry I haven't been around much. A lot has changed, I'm a doctor now and I'm always really busy."

He took a deep breath before starting his next sentence. "So you know Odango? She's that annoying girl I told you about.. Anyway, turns out she was Sailor Moon. The girl I told you I really liked. I think may have actually liked Odango the whole time, but I didn't know it yet." He smiled at how they used to bicker, and how she was the first girl to make him blush. "Long story short, because it is _truly _a long story, I married her!"

He looked at their graves as if expecting them to answer him, or show some enthusiasm. He was once again greeted with silence. What was he doing here anyway?He couldn't remember them. What was a family if you couldn't remember them?

"She's pregnant too.. We're going to have a girl.." Mamoru said, a small smile on her face. "Odango, is something special. You would both love her so much.. I know you would. She's just bright and always smiling. She's pretty different from me. I'm quiet, but she- she could talk a mile a minute, and she's always this tiny ball of energy."

His voice cracked on the next part. "She's going to be such a good mother, and she doesn't even know it. She's the only person I know who would lay on the couch for hours and talk to the baby, a-as if she's going to answer her back. I'm not sure how I deserve her at times, she's so full of love and I'm just.."

"Not." He whispered, tears now falling down his face. "I'm not. I've been so lonely ever since you guys left me.. It's all I've known. I'm not sure what you guys were even like, or what it's like to have a family you remember.. I just want you to be here, to celebrate with us. I'm so sorry I've never told you this.." He sobbed.

Then, there was a noise from behind him.

He turned around quickly, and nearly stumbled when he saw Usagi standing there. She had the flowers tucked protectively under her arm, and her eyes were sympathetic as she watched her husband. She was almost as soaked from the rain as he was, her hair falling flat, and her bare legs covered in mud from following him in while wearing a dress.

He, was a sight as well; his face was most likely red, and his eyes were bloodshot.

"Usa-ko, what are you doing in the rain?" Mamoru asked.

Usagi shook her head and held out the flowers pathetically, and he could hear her try to hold back her sobs as she stared at him. "I-I'm sorry Mamo-chan, I just forgot to give you your flowers..."

He didn't say anything, but the wobble of his bottom lip told her enough.

"Oh, Mamo-chan!" She sobbed, as she ran into his arms.

He caught her and he lowered them both to the ground, wrapping his arms around her. When he finally had her warm body in his arms, he started sobbing earnestly. His face was buried in her shoulder, and he couldn't stop himself from letting out every emotion he had been keeping in for all these years.

She placed a kiss to his head. "You're not alone, me and Usa.. we're your family." She whispered, guiding his hand to her abdomen. "You could never lose us, or forget us. We're your family now, it's okay to cry."

"I love you both so much." He whispered, bending his head down just enough to place a kiss on his wife's belly. "So much.."

They both sat there, uncaring about the fact that they were muddy or even that the rain was finally beginning to stop. They just sat there, together. It was a monumental moment for Mamoru; he had finally allowed himself to be vulnerable in front of someone.

As he held her, he looked over at his parents' graves one last time. Perhaps Usagi and Usa was their gift to him. Maybe they had known that she and Usa would some day come into his life and change everything, and bring out the best in him.

They must've known.

He just didn't know how to thank them for that.

* * *

_**Please review :)**_

_**Some things to look forward to:**_

_**Baby kicks and the Outers (gasp, what?) **_

_**Not in the same chapter, but you'll see what I mean. **_


	13. The thing about baby kicks

_Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon_

_So I have a job now! Which is really awesome because that means I can pay for my own things, but kinda bad for me as well because I have less time to do things like write.. and study. So I will try my absolute best to write better on weekends, and get on the ball.. writer's block be damned (even though i've actually done pretty well so far :D). _

_Also I'm slowin' things down for a little bit cause as I was getting ready to write 24 weeks I did a mental check, and i was like, oh my goodness I don't have too much time left. So.. if you have noticed, I was skipping a week for a little bit, but I'm going to stay kinda consecutive for these chapters._

**_Some things coming up.. _**

_**Next chapter I will be introducing the outers! Yay!** **I'm a bit nervous because they are so mysterious, and I've always considered myself a lot closer to the inners, not too say I don't love those outers cause I sure do! It's just the inner senshi are my babies, they really are. So I will try my best to stay in character. Sweet Hotaru is involved, and it is adorable.**_

_**I've been asked if I was planning on writing some kind of scare or complication with the baby. I didn't really say much on it, but I have something. I don't know if that will be the chapter after the next one or a later chapter, but I'm a big fan of angst, but I'm also a fan of cliff hangers :) **_

_Anyway, enough of my diatribe, on with the chapter :D_

* * *

_(23 weeks) _

Mamoru thought they were going to die the first time Usagi felt the baby kick. No, he was not over-exaggerating, they could have actually died. To be fair, Usagi had been more than aggravated with the baby inside of her. As soon as she found out that she would be able to feel Usa kick at any moment, she had dedicated her time to get her to just that.

Mamoru was a bit flustered at times at Usagi's absolute determination to get that baby to kick; he wasn't flustered because she was trying to get the baby to kick, but because she was trying to get her to kick no matter where they were.

If that meant that Usagi would place her hands on her abdomen and engage in a full blown story on why she hated carrots in the grocery store, then so be it. Today, they had been shopping the baby store, browsing for the perfect crib for Usa. When Usagi and Mamoru disagreed on which one to pick, Usagi had loudly exclaimed to her belly (and to everyone surronding them) that _'papa didn't have a valid opinion because he didn't have a baby making him uncomfortable all of the time.' _and, _'Usa should kick for mama just to prove papa wrong.'_

Chibi-Usa had Usagi's stubbornness that much was obvious, even if Usagi insisted that she was as stubborn as Mamoru. As much as Mamoru tried to convince his wife that the baby would kick when she wanted to, Usagi was aggravated and a little worried.

Mamoru wasn't. After all, this was their daughter they were talking about. She always stubborn and difficult, and he figured she wasn't much different, even in the womb. So he wasn't expecting Usagi to feel any actual movement for at least a little bit longer.

Fast forward to a few hours later when they were on their way home from a busy day of shopping and bickering over things for the nursery. Mamoru had his hands firmly on the steering wheel, and every now and again he would glance at Usagi who was admiring the tiny knitted booties that she could only fit two of her fingers in.

Mamoru smiled and focused back on the road, it was nice to know that Usagi was content if only for a little bit. He could hear Usagi humming to herself as she looked through the bag that was resting on her lap.

Everything was great until Usagi let out a loud gasp, dropping the bag on the floorboard and placed her hands on her bump-hunching over. Mamoru thought they were going to die at this point because he had totally forgot about that fact that he was driving at the time, and his attention was fully on Usagi and he only remembered he was driving when someone honked at him for swerving into their lane.

He pulled off to the side of the road quickly and turned to Usagi who was..

smiling?

He turned his head in confusion when his giddy wife turned to him and struggled to find words to describe what she was experiencing, her hand was still pressed against her belly and Mamoru was just now realizing that his wife was definitely fine.

"Usa-ko what's the matter?" He gasped.

"She kicked!" Usagi squealed. "She kicked and it kinda hurt a little bit, but she kicked!"

Suddenly, Usagi grabbed Mamoru's hand and pressed it against her belly. She looked at him expectantly. He too had was staring at her in anticipation and excitement, but the longer they stayed in that position the more apparent it became that the baby would not be kicking anytime soon.

"Aw.." Usagi pouted. "Well, maybe she's asleep now or something I'm sure she'll kick for you soon."

"Y-Yeah, of course.." Mamoru said, trying to hide his disappointment. "She'll kick again."

* * *

Mamoru was getting aggravated, not that he would tell Usagi or anything because she would only smirk and point out that he teased her for being aggravated. Then he would have to _**admit **_to his wife that perhaps Chibi-Usa got her impatience and stubbornness from him also.

He couldn't admit that to her.

But he had a valid reason to be aggravated! Contrary to what Usagi had assured him, he had yet to feel Usa kick. The entire next day, Usagi would press her hand against her belly and giggle in pure glee as the baby gave a strong kick. When Chibi-Usa was most active, Usagi would hurry to Mamoru and press his hand against her belly once more and he would wait for anything..

There were no kicks.

"She just stops when you put your hand there, Mamo-chan.. I dunno why." Usagi shrugged, "maybe she gets tired or something."

Mamoru would only nod, trying to hide his impatience with his unborn daughter. Yes, he realized how stupid that sounded, and he tried to convince himself that since Usagi could feel the baby kick all it was easier for her to just press her hand against her abdomen and feel the baby kick.. It wasn't just him who couldn't feel Chibi-Usa.

Oh, but then he came home after a long day at work.

He can usually tell when the girls are over. First, he can hear his wife's laughter from down the hall.. and second is because Minako wasn't shy when it came to saying her perverted jokes quite loudly and for everyone to hear.

But this time was different because they were all squealing when he walked inside; Ami-chan, who was usually incredibly quiet, even let put a squeak of joy. They were surronding Usagi, fighting over who would get to feel the baby next.

"Oh wow, Usagi-chan, isn't that a little uncomfortable?" Rei asked.

"Rei-chan, it's very natural." Ami informed.

"Ew, it's like there's an alien inside of you, it feels funny." Minako said, crinkling her nose.

"Minako-chan, please never have children." Makoto dead panned.

"What's going on?" Mamoru asked.

Usagi looked up and smiled, pointing to her belly. "When I told the girls about Usa kicking now, they all came over and wanted to feel her. They came over right after Mama, Papa, and Shingo came over.."

Mamoru frowned a bit. She was just kicking for everyone, wasn't she?

EVERYONE except him.

"Why don't you come over and try to feel her, Mamo-chan?" Usagi grinned. "She's been super active all day, and she'll probably kick for you!"

The girls stared at him expectantly, and he walked over, dragging his feet slightly. He already knew the outcome, only this time the girls were there and Minako would probably snicker and say something inappropriate, because she was Minako.

He pressed his hand on his wife's belly, but this time he stared at her abdomen with some kind of determination as if he could tell Chibi-Usa to kick his hand through some sort of brain waves.

But, alas, she didn't kick.

"She stopped." Usagi sighed.

"Mamoru-san I think-"

Makoto put her hand over Minako's mouth and Mamoru was forever thankful for that.

* * *

"You know Mamo-chan, I don't know why she always stops when you try to feel her kick." Usagi slurred sleepily. "It's like she kicks and kicks and then as soon as you press your hand there, she just stops.. I'm sorry.."

Mamoru smiled down at his sleepy wife, placing a strand of golden hair behind her ear. "It's not your fault, Usa-ko. I'll be able to feel her, eventually. For now why don't you just get some rest."

Usagi mumbled something and nodded her head. Mamoru stared at her until she started snoring, and a line of drool made it's way down the side of her mouth. When was for certain she was sound asleep he scooted down the bed, until he was facing her belly..

As embarrassing as this was going to be, desperate times call for desperate measures.

"Okay, listen, everyone's had the privilege of feeling you kick their hand.. everyone except me." Mamoru explained, pressing his hand against his sleeping wife's belly. "Obviously, your mama deserves to feel you because she's the one doing all of the work.. But I'm your papa so don't you think I should be able to feel you second or something.."

"Or at least tenth, because there was your mama and then your grandma and grandpa, and Shingo.. and the girls. I just would like for you to like kick my hand at least once and I swear I'll leave you alone, and I'll even let you date before the age of thirty if you would just kick my hand-"

He was shocked when he felt a strong kick against his hand. It was an odd feeling, almost like it wasn't even a baby at all.. Mamoru pulled his hand back in shock, before he placed his hand back in it's original spot.

She kicked again, that time a little bit harder.

"Usa-ko." He whispered loudly, trying to get his wife's attention who had her nose scrunched in annoyance probably due to being woken up. "Usa-ko, she just kicked my hand!"

"Yeah, I felt it, she probably wants you to let her sleep." Usagi mumbled.

"You kicked my hand!" Mamoru said again, this time to his unborn daughter.

He pressed a kiss to the spot where his daughter had just kicked his hand, and he could feel Usagi run her fingers through his hair slowly.

He was content now, except for the fact that he would have to let her date before the age of thirty.

* * *

_**Sorry for the wait, I am working a lot. All next week I'm working 5 to 10. I'll try to update more on the weekends.**_

**_Things to look forward to:_**

**_THE OUTERS (YES, they will make their appearance in the next chapter)_**

**_Angst (a scare of some kind maybe? Not next chapter) _**


	14. The thing about the outers

_Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon _

_Well it's official, I am officially a high school graduate! That explains part of my absence, mostly because my friends and I have been spending quality time together because my group of friends has been together since middle school and we're going to separated across the state, and one of us is going all the way to Idaho. It's been difficult and I've done more than enough crying, and I'm selfish part of me wants to lock them in my room and keep them with me forever- but I know it's for the best. Not to mention work has been hectic I've been working 5:30 to midnight on most nights, and ugh, I've been exhausted. _

**_Also, because- well, I'm a bit nervous about this chapter. A much as I love the outers, I've always been more of an inner girl. I can write them to a T at times and I'm confident in that- but then you get to the mysterious and serious outers and it's much harder so please forgive me for anything OOC. The outer senshi mean a lot to so many people and I don't want to screw that up, so if it takes a bit for me to post it so be it. I want to get them right._**

* * *

(24 weeks)

"Do you ever feel as if the air is getting thicker?" Michiru mused to the two women beside her, as her eyes stayed settled on the young girl in front of them who seemed to be taking in her new found freedom now more than ever. "-Or maybe heavier, I'm not quite sure."

"Thicker?" Haruka questioned. "You mean as in humid, because it's getting to be that time of year.'

Michiru pulled a face and nudged her significant other with her elbow, causing Haruka to chuckle slightly. She looked over at Setsuna who seemed to deep in thought about Michiru's statement. Michiru smiled slightly, of course she could always trust in Setsuna to understand exactly what she was saying.

Haruka frowned. "Why do I get the feeling you two are leaving me out?"

"Oh, don't be a big baby.." Michiru responded playfully, giving a quick squeeze to Haruka's hand.

"It does seem a bit heavy as of late, but I don't think it's because of an impending doom- maybe something, a bit more.." Setsuna drifted off, a small reminiscent smile gracing her lips. "..joyful."

This time, both Haruka and Michiru pulled a face. Michiru scoffed, of course leave it to Setsuna to speak in riddles that only she knew, and Haruka to take some of the things Michiru had to say at face value only. It was one of the only downfalls with living with a timekeeper and your soulmate. At least she had Hotaru, the little girl would always respond to her questions with the wisdom of someone twice her age.

Hotaru pulled Michiru out of her trance when she joyfully pressed her face against the window of a cafe, and before Michiru could gently reprimand her for pressing her face to the clean glass, Hotaru stopped her before she could even speak.

"It's Usagi!" She said happily.

As the three women caught up with Hotaru, they could see that it was definitely their Princess. She sat alone in the cafe, with only a milkshake to keep her company. Although she didn't seem that upset as she happily sipped at her sweet drink.

"She's all alone, that's new." Michiru commented.

"Well since we're out, how about we go say hi to kitten." Haruka replied.

Hotaru was already ahead of them as she opened the door to the cafe and the three followed behind. As soon as the door closed, and the small chime indicated their entrance, Usagi looked up from her large milkshake and smiled brightly. She hadn't changed a bit, much to Haruka's pleasure. They hadn't seen each Usagi for quite some time; mainly because there hadn't been an enemy for awhile, and Michiru and Haruka had decided to tour around the world granting them more and more fame.

So the three (Hotaru, Michiru, and Haruka.. but not Setsuna because she seemed to know everything) didn't suspect a thing.. until she stood to meet them and they could see that they were _clearly _not informed of a certain huge event that was in the process. That, or Usagi's eating habits had finally caught up with her.

"Is this the joyful thing that you were hinting towards?" Michiru asked Setsuna who in return simply smiled and winked.

"Hello!" Usagi practically squealed, earning some annoyed glances from the few people who were eating in the diner. Before Haruka and Michiru could so much as blink, Usagi had wrapped her arms around them, tugging Setsuna and Hotaru in too. Once again, confusing Haruka as to how someone so tiny could be so energetic and strong.

The blonde pulled away, rocking back and forth on her tip toes. "Oh wow, it's been such a long time! I've been trying to find you, but I couldn't! Mamo-chan figured you must have left Japan for a bit, but I didn't think so- and you know Mamo-chan, such an optimist!"

".. I think you mean, pessimist, Usagi-chan." Michiru giggled, covering her mouth with her hand.

"It has been awhile.." Haruka nodded, her eyes glued on Usagi's protruding abdomen. Holy crap, when did kitten get pregnant? Haruka tightened her jaw, how dare Mamoru.. She was pulled out of her trance when Michiru nudged her.

"She's married, Haruka.." Michiru mumbled, as if she could read Haruka's thoughts.

Oh yeah, she was married wasn't she?

"So you're obviously very pregnant." Haruka commented, getting another nudge from Michiru. "What I'm just addressing the elephant in the room!"

Usagi seemed confused and she turned to Setsuna with an odd expression on her face. "The elephant in the- what?" When Setsuna simply shook her head and smiled Usagi turned back to Michiru and Haruka and grinned. "Well, actually I'm 24 weeks, and it's definitely Chibi-Usa because she keeps me awake every night and I _**always **_have to pee, like all of the time!"

"Where is Mamoru and the girls, I thought they would be here with you." Michiru responded, trying to steer the conversation away from the topic of Usagi's newly-found bladder issues.

Usagi looked back at her empty booth and a frown tugged at her lips. "Well, Mamo-chan is at work, and the girls were supposed to meet me here but they bailed because they have something to plan that doesn't involve me. So I'm by myself for awhile."

Michiru smiled knowingly, they were planning something for Usagi no doubt. Why else would they pass up the chance to spend time with Usagi? "Well, we have some time to spare- would you like to spend some time with us? After all, we have a lot to catch up on."

"Yeah!" Usagi exclaimed, connecting elbows with Michiru and Setsuna and catching them both off guard. "Can we maybe get something to eat too, cause I never got to order my food and I'm a teeny bit hungry-" her stomach growled at that moment.. "okay I'm really hungry."

"Sure thing kitten, I can drive us to a very nice place and you can order whatever you would like." Haruka winced at her own words, she had seemed to forget how much of an eater Usagi was, and she silently prayed that maybe Usagi wouldn't be all that hungry. But this was Usagi they were talking about- and, as much as Haruka loved her, if anything stayed consistent about her, it was her eating habits.

As they were walking out, and Usagi moved forward to chat with Setsuna ad Hotaru, Haruka looked over at Michiru with a sense of dread on her face and the aqua haired woman laughed quietly, grabbing a hold of Haruka's hand.

"I'm sure it will be fine." Michiru comforted.

"I think our princess' optimism is rubbing off on you, Michiru." Haruka responded.

Michiru shrugged and smiled softly. "Yes, well, she is carrying the future princess and Hotaru's best friend and soulmate- the least we can do is treat her and pamper her... if only for a day."

"You're right." Haruka agreed.

"Aren't I always?" Michiru said smugly.

"Okay.. now you're just getting a big head."

* * *

Usagi was treated and pampered like a princess, and Haruka felt like there was a significant hole burnt in her pocket but she didn't dare complain because the smile on Usagi's face was worth it. Well, that, and it was Michiru who kept offering to treat Usagi to different things. First it was the dinner, and then Usagi mentioned that it was getting harder for her to fit into her favorite outfits (and then there wer tears which she blamed on Chibi-Usa); they let her buy a couple outfits to make her feel pretty again. Then she mentioned how her back was always hurting her these days (which she blamed on Chibi-Usa) and Haruka graciously offered (with a little guidance from Michiru, of course) to treat her to a nice quick massage that soon turned into nail treatments as well (and Michiru got one too).

Now, as Usagi happily followed Setsuna and Hotaru into the house, Haruka was left looking at her credit card with a look of slight worry on her face. That was until he felt Michiru's arm wrap around her waist and small kiss placed on her cheek.

"You're very kind, Haruka." Michiru smiled.

"Aren't I always?' Haruka chuckled.

"Mhm. Now whose getting the big head."

* * *

Usagi felt a bit out of place as she walked into the lovely house. It was all very lavish, clean, and decorated and not to mention, big. Not that she didn't love the apartment she and Mamoru shared, but this was just beautiful. Even though they could probably easily afford a house, she and Mamoru agreed that an apartment would be easier since Crystal Tokyo was destined to happen shortly after Chibi-Usa's birth.

At the thought of Crystal Tokyo, Usagi frowned slightly. It was still scary to her- terrifying actually, that the future was never set and stone and her actions could drastically change the future for the better or for worse. To be honest, part of Usagi remained slightly bitter that she had seen the future in the first place. To know how everything will most likely turn out, seemed to eliminate the mystery in life.

"Usagi-chan, would you like anything to drink?" Setsuna asked, pulling Usagi from her thoughts. The time keeper seemed to notice this, because she set the glass she was holding on the table and approached Usagi slowly. "Is something bothering you?"

"Setsuna-san, you know the future don't you?" Usagi asked wearily.

Setsuna chuckled at Usagi's question. "Well- yes, I have been guarding the time gate for quite some time, I tend to know a lot of things that are going to happen in the future.." Setsuna's attitude went from playful to serious as she saw the conflicted look on Usagi's face. "You want to know if everything will be alright, don't you?"

Usagi looked up at Setsuna, and for a second Setsuna expected Usagi to question rather or not she could read minds too. But the blonde's eyes grew sad, and her hands went to her abdomen and she nodded slowly.

Setsuna placed a soothing hand on Usagi's shoulder. She, too, became upset for Usagi and Mamoru at times. To know your future, was very stressful. No one was supposed to know their future.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you everything, such as what time she will be born or if there will be any complications- I can't tell you that." Setsuna began. "But I will tell you that the child you carry is Small Lady, and the future I know is a happy one."

"Are there different futures?" Usagi asked.

Setsuna nodded.

"Sad and happy?" Usagi asked.

She hesitated, but nodded.

"What if I get the bad one?" Usagi asked.

Setsuna smiled softly. "What happened to that hopeful girl I know so well?"

"I know, I'm sorry.. I just- I've been a bit worried about what kind of mother I'll be, just remembering how Chibi-Usa felt when we went to the 30th century and how she turned into-"

Usagi couldn't finish.

"Usagi-chan, there is no such thing as a bad future, in my opinion. You, have overcome so much and you lit up the galaxy with your hope. Neo-Queen Serenity loves Small Lady with everything she is, and she is a great mother even if she cannot be there all of the time. There is no such thing as a perfect mother, as you know. But Small Lady looks up to her mother and Sailor Moon, and I have faith in you because I have seen you overcome worse."

Usagi smiled, and surprised herself by keeping her emotions at bay. "Thank you, Setsuna-san, for everything."

"Always a pleasure, Princess." Setsuna replied.

"Hey Setsuna-mama, do you know where my Haruka-papa's piano music is, she's getting a bit grumpy because she can't find it." Hotaru asked, skipping into the room and giggling slightly when Setsuna rolled her eyes.

"I'll be back, Usagi-chan." Setsuna apologized, hurrying to help her living partner find her beloved sheet music.

Hotaru approached Usagi slowly after Setsuna left, almost as if she was shy. "Is Chibi-Usa-chan really in there?"

Usagi grinned and placed her hand on her abdomen and nodded. "Yeah, I know it's her because when she hears your voice she kicks me right.. here-" Usagi pointed to the place her unborn daughter had just kicked. "I think she knows that it's you, Hotaru-chan."

Hotaru's eyes brightened up and she stuck her hand out timidly, as if waiting for permission from Usagi to place her hand on her belly. Usagi nodded encouragingly and guided her small hand to the place where the baby had just kicked.

"You can say something to her." Usagi said.

"Hello, Chibi-Usa-chan, it's me.. Hotaru." Hotaru said slowly. "I can't wait to meet you and finally be with you for good. You are my best friend, and my very first friend and I love you a lot."

Hotaru gasped a bit when she felt a strong kick to her hand, she looked up at Usagi and smiled. "She does know it's me."

Usagi nodded and Hotaru cleared her throat, and looked up at the blonde. "Thank you for giving me another chance, and for believing in me when other's didn't. It's because of you, I get the chance to finally be with Chibi-Usa-chan for good."

Usagi pulled Hotaru into her arms, and this time..

She couldn't stop herself from crying.

* * *

_**I actually really like this one? Yeah, I do!**_

_**It took so long because the day after I wrote it we moved, and I haven't had internet for a bit, but we do now so yayyY!**_

_**I hope you guys like it too, I tried very hard on the outers and took special care. I apologize if they are OOC. I tried so hard (and got sooo farrrrrr).**_

_**/Please review/**_


	15. The thing about Usagi (part 1)

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon**

_**~Please read, very important (not really, like, it will probably not effect your day in any way whatsoever but just read it and make me happy, okay?)~**_

_**Hello! This chapter was a personal struggle for me tbh, because I didn't know how I was going to do it without making it TOO much. I have a tendency to be too much, I'm a Pisces please forgive me- not the cool, Michiru type of Pisces my own type which is an emotional wreck 100% of the time, but I digress. **_

_**There will most likely be two parts to this chapter because a.) I'm an evil little woman who does that sometimes and b.) This gives me time to, you know... plan my next action and what-not **_

_**BUT, I'm not all that evil I will have the next part done by the time I post this, so you will not have to suffer almost a month waiting for my slow ass to actually sit down and write a chapter, hoping I have a good reason, but knowing deep in your heart I'm probably just too lazy and too busy watching cat videos to sit down and write (or you aren't thinking that, but it's true... sometimes)**_

_**This story is coming to an end soon which means that Chibi-Usa will be here.. soon. So I leave this to you guys, what should I do next?**_

_**Option 1: A cute little story of Mamoru and Usagi raising Chibi-Usa and the trials of being parents (Probably a name similar this one, AU without Crystal Tokyo existing and Chibi-Usa being a normal child, not the crowned princess of Earth. But Usagi still was Sailor Moon.. etc) **_

**_Option 2: A cute little story of King Endymion and Neo-Queen Serenity raising Small Lady and struggling (humorous and angsty) with being King and Queen and raising their little child (probably a bit more angsty than happy unlike the one above)_**

**_Option 3: A new story of usamamo and one-shots that I come up with (I might actually do this one regardless because I have like 500 word fics that have nowhere to go :p)_**

* * *

(26 weeks)

Usagi slumped on the sofa and tapped her large belly with her fingers and sighed. Another perfect night failed. She looked over at the clock that read midnight and pouted slightly. It was no fair, and the childish part of her wanted to cry and the hormonal part of her wanted to scream. She kicked her short legs up with a grunt, because she could barely get them past her stomach these days, and she flopped on the couch.

It was no fair.

"It's no fair." Usagi said out loud, with another pout, crossing her arms over her chest.

Luna, who had been staring at her with anticipation tilted her head to the left slightly. She had been this way ever since Mamoru had called, informing her that he was going to have to stay later than anticipated. That's when Usagi realized that the dinner she had made would have to wait for another day. Luna had been more than surprised at her leader's maturity; with only a couple tears, the blonde put the food up and sat on the couch with a pout on her face.

It was a shame, Luna figured it would actually be a good meal considering how diligently Usagi had worked on it and how patient she was while she prepared the food. But Mamoru had been busy that entire week so far, in and out of the hospital, and the couple had barely any time to spend with each other. Usagi should have been used to it, considering she married Mamoru when she was nineteen-years-old and she had dealt with these late nights for awhile now.

But now- now there was Chibi-Usa.

"No, it's no fair, Usagi-chan." Luna agreed, hopping on the arm of the sofa and looking down at her melodramatic owner. "But, Mamoru-san is a doctor now and he has a duty to protect people."

Usagi mumbled something into the leather of the sofa and Luna rolled her eyes.

"What was that?"

Usagi lifted her head up and looked at Luna, eyebrows furrowed. "What if- What if he finds somewhere prettier than me, like a nurse or something.. someone who isn't all breathless and red in the face, and doesn't have a huge belly that gets in the way of hugs."

"Oh, now you're just being ridiculous." Luna scolded slightly. "You know that would never happen."

Usagi rested her head back on the sofa and sighed. "I know.. But there are tons of women who are better than me, Luna."

Luna leaned down and rested her paw on Usagi's head. "But there is only one Usagi-chan, only one Sailor Moon, and only one Princess Serenity. Mamoru fell in love with three sides of you, but mostly he fell in love with Usagi-chan."

Usagi perked up at the sound of the front door closing, and her husband's exasperated sigh. Luna laughed as her owner rushed to go and greet Mamoru, effectively ridding herself of her previous stress.

"You're home, Mamo-chan!" Usagi exclaimed, wrapping her arms around his waist and nearly knocking him off his feet.

"Yeah, I'm sorry I had to stay so late, Usa-ko." He mumbled, bending down to gently place a kiss to the top of her head. "We were short staffed, with the main doctor being on vacation and all.. I had to fill in for him."

Usagi barely suppressed a sigh, and smiled gently, patting Mamoru on the chest. "It's okay, Mamo-chan, I understand. You have to go save the day and be doctor Mamo-chan, and I'm very proud of you."

She finally looked up at him, and he would have laughed at her calling him 'doctor Mamo-chan' if it wasn't for the fact that he knew deep down that she wasn't as happy as she was putting on. After leaving her in Japan years ago while he went to America, Mamoru learned that his Usa-ko had a tendency to act happy for her loved ones even if she was hurting inside.

"You must be hungry, I'll see if we have anything you can eat." Usagi said quickly, turning on her heel and hurrying to the kitchen so fast that Mamoru was left shocked at how soon Usagi had changed the subject.

He followed her to the kitchen, and found that Usagi had already busied herself with getting some kind of meal ready. Although Mamoru wasn't exactly sure what it was, he could tell by the redness of her cheeks, and the way she would quickly brush away her tears that she was even more upset than she let on.

"Usa-ko, what's the matter?" Mamoru asked, gently taking a hold of his wife's arm before she could grab something else.

At his touch, she stopped what she was doing. She took in a shaky breath, and turned around slowly. Her eyes were red from tears, and she let out a watery laugh, wiping away her tears once again.

"I don't even know why I'm crying." Usagi said. "This silly kid, she's already a pain in the butt."

"It's because I haven't been home, isn't it?" Mamoru supplied.

Usagi nodded quickly and sniffed, keeping her gaze on the ground. "It's just, I miss you and I'm lonely all of the time. A-And the baby's room isn't even started, and there are cobwebs on the corners of the ceilings.. I know that they need you more than I do, and I'm being selfish and silly but I just _**miss **_you-"

Mamoru chuckled and shook his head, and Usagi looked up at him- offended.

"Mamoru Chiba are you laughing at me?" She snapped.

"I miss you too." Mamoru replied, wiping the tears from her cheeks. "You and Usa are the most important people to me in the world, and tomorrow, on my day off, we will start on that room I promise."

A huge smile spread across Usagi's face, as she once again embraced her husband with such eagerness that it nearly knocked him off of his feet. He laughed and hugged her back.

They stayed that way for a few minutes, before Usagi pulled away and started bouncing on her feet rambling on about all of the things they could do with Usa's room. Mamoru tried to match her enthusiasm, but in the pit of his stomach he was worried that something would happen that would force him to break his promise.

* * *

The next morning they woke up bright and early and Mamoru got straight to work. Usagi helped as much as she could, given her condition; she folded what baby clothes they had and placed them in the dresser. She would stop at random intervals to coo at the tininess of the baby socks, and show them to Mamoru who was busying himself with placing the easy-peel stickers on the top of the walls. The stickers had been Usagi's idea, because they lived in a cozy apartment and there wasn't much they could do with the walls.

Mamoru chuckled and humored his wife; he agreed with her that the baby clothes were indeed adorable. Along with his task of bringing the baby furniture into the room, he also had to remind his wife that it was important that she didn't stay on her feet for too long, and that she stayed hydrated.

"I'm too excited, Mamo-chan." Usagi said, practically bouncing on her feet. "This is the first time in a whole week that we get to spend time together, AND we're finally getting started on the baby's room."

Mamoru had declared that it was Usagi's day, and he would fix the room any way Usagi wanted it. He even let Usagi play Minako's sugary pop album in the background as they worked. His morning was full of Usagi singing tunelessly, but he didn't mind it.

As the song switched to the next track, both Usagi and Mamoru heard the phone ringing. Mamoru's heart dropped to his stomach, hoping that it wasn't a phone call from the hospital, cutting their day short.

"I got it Mamo-chan." Usagi said in a sing-song voice, obviously not harboring the same worries as her significant other.

He heard her voice from the nursery. "Hello, this is the Chiba residence."

Then silence.

His worries were confirmed as the happiness seemed to drain from his wife's voice.

"Mamo-chan, it's for you." She called to him. "It's the hospital."

He sighed, running his hand through his hair in aggravation. He hurried to the next room, taking the phone from Usagi who backed away slowly. "Is something the matter?" He asked, already knowing the answer.

"I'm sorry Chiba-san but we're in desperate need of help, I'm afraid there's been a large accident today and we need any available hands, it's mandatory." The secretary explained. "Sorry for any inconvenience."

Mamoru looked back at Usagi who nodded solemnly, giving him permission to end the first day they'd had together all week. Mamoru sent her an apologetic glance and answered the waiting secretary on the other end of the line.

"I'll be right there."

He hung up the phone and found that Usagi had already grabbed his coat and his keys. He took both of them from her gently, and kissed her cheek. To his surprise, there were no tears from Usagi, only smiles- and he knew that once again she as holding back her true emotions.

That weighed heavy on his heart as he left Usagi by herself once more.

* * *

Much to Luna's surprise, Usagi hadn't resigned herself to resting on the couching for the entire night like she had many times before. Instead, she didn't seem the least bit bothered by Mamoru's absence. She picked up exactly where she and Mamoru had left off. She continued to fold clothes, and she even finished placing the stickers on the wall.

Luna nearly fainted when she walked in on Usagi half way up the ladder, pressing the stickers to the wall with one hand, and holding onto her belly with the other- all while humming to herself, like she didn't almost give her cat a heart-attack!

"Usagi-chan, what do you think you're doing!" Luna snapped.

Usagi looked down at her cat and smiled. "Luna, it's fine, I'm not even all the way up here!" She turned back to her work. "Anyway, you know what they say- sometimes you gotta do things yourself to get them done."

"No one's ever said that, Usagi-chan!" Luna yelled. "Will you at least rest? You've been going at this for hours without anything to drink or eat- You haven't sat down since Mamoru-san left! You're sweating!"

Usagi rolled her eyes, aggravated that Luna didn't think she was capable enough to do things on her own. "It's fine Luna, I'm fine. You're fine. Everything is fine, Mamo-chan is fine. The baby is fine." Usagi grumbled. "Everyone on the entire Earth is very, very fine."

Now she wasn't making any sense. Luna took one last look at her owner, and turned away. She was finding herself longing for the days where Usagi would lay in bed all day whining to Luna about how she didn't want to anything- just read manga and eat. At least that Usagi wouldn't give Luna a near panic attack at the fact that Usagi might work herself to death.

Usagi continued for hours, and when she finally finished her decorating she beamed up at her work and slowly made her way down the step ladder, safely and without harm. Although, she did find herself growing a bit exhausted. But as she looked around, at the mess that was her unborn child's room- she found herself filled with more energy.

She grabbed the next basket of clothing, and she found it to be a bit heavy, but she picked it up just enough to be off of the floor and carried it to the nursery. She busied herself with folding the little pajamas and booties and placing them in the drawers.

But as she continued on, she found herself truly getting exhausted. She stopped folding the laundry as she pressed her hand against forehead and realized, as she was overcome with a wave of vertigo, that perhaps Luna was right about taking a break. Maybe she was just trying to convince herself that she wasn't upset about Mamoru having to leave her once again- or maybe she was scared of so many things at once that the only way to not worry was to busy herself.

"Luna!" She called out, sounded weaker than intended.

She pressed her hand against the dresser and stood, and her blood ran cold as a sharp pain went through her, starting just at her lower back. She gasped and leaned against the dresser, trying to catch her breath and calm herself as her anxiety grew.

"Luna!" She nearly screamed this time.

She found the determination to make it to hallway, where Luna was, staring at her- eyes full of worry. Usagi shook her head as she gasped again, another pain hitting her- this one worse than the last.

"L-Luna you're right, s-something is wrong." Usagi stuttered.

Before Luna could even respond, Usagi fell-arms out in a futile attempt to catch herself and her eyes fell shut.

Without a second thought, Luna went to find the communicator that Usagi had kept for emergencies.

"Hold on, Usagi-chan, I'll get help!" Luna called to her unconscious owner, trying to keep her panic at bay.

* * *

"Okay, so let's go over the plan- we're going to have it at the shrine obviously, because Rei is the only one with the luxury of a large yard." Makoto stated, a bit bitter at the last statement. "So how are we going to get Usagi-chan over here?"

"Food." Minako stated.

"Nah, because she'd be late." Rei sighed. "Even with food."

"A slumber party?" Ami suggested. "I mean, Usagi-chan would love something like that especially because it's been so long since we've all had one of those. Usagi-chan doesn't wake up until noon, if we wake up early enough we should be able to get everything ready."

"Good thinking, Ami-chan!" Minako praised, sticking another piece of candy in her mouth. "Usagi-chan sleeps like a hog."

"Umm.. actually it's-" Ami went to say, but she was cut short as a loud beeping sound made everyone stop what they were doing.

"My communicator?" Ami gasped, taking the object from her bag and pressing the button. "It's from Usagi-chan!"

All of the girls went into senshi mode, even if it **had** been more than two years since there had been any danger. Ami hit the button, and Luna's face appeared on the screen, she was out of breath, and Usagi was nowhere to be found.

"Please come quick, it's Usagi-chan." Luna gasped. "Something is wrong with the baby!"

Ami tried to hide her stress as she nodded, determined to help her friend any way she could. She turned to Minako who was standing; she had already grabbed her keys from her purse.

"Minako, drive as fast as you can." Ami ordered.

* * *

**_CLIFFHANGER.. KINDA, it wasn't that bad.._**

_**This took me awhile, because I was really felt like a crappy writer- I get really down on myself every once and awhile. **_

_**Please review, I'll have part 2 ready by the time I have this up. Actually, it's three o'clock in the morning and i'm exhausted, so it will probably be up sometime in the day because I'm impatient. **_


	16. The thing about Usagi (part 2)

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon, still...**

_As promised here is the second part, I'm going to put it up just before I got to work. So make sure to leave me lots of good reviews, because I'm going to come home at 11:30 probably wanting disappear and lay in bed all day :P_

_Some of you voted for option 1 and most voted option 2._

_I'll put up again for let those of you who didn't get the chance to vote to do so. Basically, Chibi-Usa will be arriving soon which means that this story is going to come to an end with just a handful more of chapters._

**_So I'm leaving it to you all to vote on what I do next:_**

**_Option 1: A more modern story, with Mamoru still being a doctor, and Usagi staying at home to raise Chibi-Usa. A more light-hearted AU with no royalty, but Usagi was still Sailor Moon etc. _**

**_Option 2: Neo-Queen Serenity and King Endymion trying to raise Small Lady. Much more angsty and dark, but still light-hearted at times. Will eventually deal with the Black Moon Clan, Black Lady, etc._**

* * *

Mamoru was pleasantly surprised by just how short the hospital shift was; of course, there were multiple victims of the accident- but none of them were too injured, which was another happy surprise for Mamoru as he was expecting causalities when the receptionist had told him it was a rather large accident. The last surprise was when the senior doctor came in to take Mamoru's place, allowing him to return home to his wife.

His worry for Usagi had appeared for the few hours he was at the hospital. When he wasn't busying himself, he was worried about her. She wouldn't tell him that she was upset of course, but he knew how much she had been looking forward to spending time with him- and finally finishing up Usa's room. After all, Mamoru realized with a hint of panic, it wouldn't be long before their daughter was with them for good.

But his worry for Usagi seemed to go beyond just how upset she would be, it seemed to be a bit deeper than that. Thirty minutes before his shift ended he was hit by a feeling in the back of his head that wasn't quite pain, but more of an annoying ringing sensation. Something that reminded him of the days where he would come to her rescue as Tuxedo Mask.

He shook it off as just being anxiety about his wife being upset. But as he started to leave the hospital, the sensation turned into a feeling in the pit of his stomach that he couldn't quite put his finger on.

"Chiba-san!" The receptionist called.

Mamoru turned on his heel as the young woman held out the phone. "You have a phone-call, Chiba-san, it's from a Hino Rei and she says that it's an emergency.." She paused, and her face grew grim. "She says it's about your wife."

Suddenly, the pain in the back of his head, and the feeling of dread made sense. A huge weight was added to his shoulders, as he hurried to the desk and grabbed the phone from the receptionists's hand. Usagi had been in trouble, and he hadn't been there.

"What's wrong, Rei?" He asked quickly.

"We're not entirely sure." Rei responded, and he could hear the worry thick in her voice. "Luna contacted us, and Usagi-chan had fainted. When we got there she was still unconscious. We're at the hospital now."

Mamoru grew quiet, his hand going to rub his forehead as he tried to think through his growing anxiety. He could barely hear Rei say his name on the other end of the phone. "Is she- are you guys at the hospital Usa-ko is registered at?" Mamoru asked.

"Yes." Rei said.

"I'll be right there." He said, handing the phone back to the receptionist without bidding Rei goodbye.

He prayed that his wife and child were alright.

* * *

Rei sat back down with a shaky sigh, burying her face in her hands. Stupid Usagi, why did she have to make everything so complicated? Why couldn't she just wait until Chibi-Usa was due to have to go the hospital? Rei gently smacked herself in the forehead, mentally punishing herself for thinking ill of her best friend even while she was unconscious in the hospital.

"That's a nasty habit of yours.. hitting yourself in the forehead." Ami stated quietly, looking up from the magazine she was reading. "Usagi-chan is tough, you know as well as I do- she'll be fine."

Rei turned her head towards the the double doors, where they had taken Usagi in on a stretcher.. saying stuff about her blood pressure, and fluids and things that Rei might have understood if she hadn't been too busy imagining the worst case scenario. Any minute now she expected a doctor to come out, eyes grim, and for him to say something good or something that would make them fall to their knees.

Hopefully Mamoru would be there by then.

Minako sat with her fingers to her temples, massaging her head in slow, soothing motions. To be completely honest, Minako would never get Usagi's face out of her head. The way she was lying on the ground when they had entered the apartment, unnaturally straight. Minako had winced at the sound of her own voice singing in the background, because apparently Usagi had been playing her CD while she was in Chibi-Usa's room; it would have made Minako blush if her unconscious friend hadn't reminded her of the dark future they had saw years before.

Neo-Queen Serenity unconscious in the crystal coffin didn't seem to hurt the same way seeing Usagi lying unconscious did.

It had been Ami who had started checking Usagi's pulse, Rei who had fell to her knees- trying to wake Usagi up, and Makoto who had eventually called for help. It had been Minako who could only stand there, not knowing how to help.

"Mamoru-san." Rei said, relieved.

Minako looked up quickly to see a very disheveled Mamoru hurrying towards them. His hair was everywhere, his tie was halfway undone, and he looked as if he had ran from the hospital he worked at to the one they were currently at.

"H-How is she?" Mamoru asked, breathing heavily.

"We don't know yet, but why don't you take a seat.." Rei suggested, placing her hands on Mamoru's shoulders and trying to get him to sit down before he had to be admitted to the hospital too.

"Do you know what happened?" Mamoru asked, looking around at the girls.

Rei looked at Ami who scooted closer to Mamoru and Rei. The blue haired senshi found herself slightly shocked at just how distraught Mamoru was; it was to be expected, of course, but Mamoru was always so calm even in stressful moments, and to see him nearly in tears threw her for a loop.

"Luna said that Usagi was over-working herself.. she was upset over something, and she wouldn't drink or eat- despite Luna's efforts." Ami explained to Mamoru. "After that, she came in and she was in pain. Luna said she fainted."

Mamoru grew quiet, and he buried his face in his hands like Rei had done earlier. Rei placed a gentle hand on Mamoru's shoulder once more, and it was a few minutes before Mamoru spoke again.

"I knew she was upset." Mamoru said quietly.

"What do you mean?" Rei asked.

"She was upset because I've barely seen her for a whole week, and when I was home I was busy with work or I was called into work." He explained. "The nursery hasn't been touched since we decided that it would be her room, and I knew she was growing anxious and upset every time she walked past that empty room. She probably- She probably wanted to prove that she was capable or that she wasn't helpless.."

"Usagi-chan does like to prove herself at times, even to the point of recklessness." Rei agreed, remembering the time that Usagi had tried to fight a youma on her own to prove that she was capable as a senshi.

"Most likely she was full of so much energy and adrenaline that she didn't realize she was growing exhausted." Ami added.

Rei's attention was pulled away from Mamoru when she felt Minako impatiently tapping on her arm, she turned to the blonde ready to snap at her for being so obnoxious, when she found that Minako was pointing to the doctor who was approaching them.

"You guys are here for.." He looked at his clipboard, adjusting the glasses that were perched on his nose. "Chiba Usagi?"

Mamoru and Rei simultaneously stood at Usagi's name, and the doctor took a step back- shocked at how fast the two had reacted. Needless to say, the three other girls weren't far from jumping out of their seat either.

"That's my wife!" Mamoru finally said. "Is she okay?"

"Is the baby okay?" Rei asked, before the doctor could respond to Mamoru's concerns.

The doctor put a hand up, and his reassuring smile nearly made Mamoru fall to his knees in relief. "The baby is just fine, there were no complications with the fall, and the heart rate is perfectly normal."

"And Usagi-chan?" Makoto asked.

"Well we were a bit worried about her for a little bit, her blood pressure dropped due to dehydration which can lead to preterm labor." The doctor explained, he once again lifted a reassuring hands when he saw the look of dread spread across their faces. "That wasn't the case for Usagi-san, she's very lucky. The pain she felt was most likely due to stress and exhaustion.. has she been sleeping and resting well?"

Mamoru thought about, and his stomach sank when he realized that she hardly ever slept anymore. She was always waiting up for him, and when he got home they would talk- sometimes until the early morning.

"She hasn't."

"I recommend that she rests for the remainder of the week, and perhaps a bit into the next week." The doctor advised. "Make sure she has full healthy meals, sleeps well, and limits the time she spends on her feet."

"I will." Mamoru nodded.

"Can we see her?" Minako asked.

The doctor frowned slightly and looked over the group of five. Mamoru knew the answer already, and so did Minako as she nodded solemnly and sat down. It was probably for the best not to have so many people surronding Usagi at once.

"She's very tired, I think it would be for the best if we limited it to family tonight- but she will be free to go tomorrow morning." The doctor said with a hint of finality, as he bid the others goodbye and went onto his business.

Mamoru turned to the girls, and sent them an apologetic look. After all, they were the ones who had helped Usagi and Usa in their time of need. Rei rolled her eyes and smiled, giving Mamoru a gentle shove.

"Ugh, don't just stand there... go see your wife." Rei said. "She's probably waiting for her Mamo-chan, and you know how she is in her hormonal state- she doesn't like to be kept waiting."

Mamoru chuckled and nodded; leave it to Rei to lighten up the dark mood.

* * *

He felt a bit out of place, walking to the desk and asking for Chiba Usagi's room. Usually he was in a white coat with a clipboard, walking down the halls to find the patient's room, ready to see what exactly he was dealing with on that particular day. But today, he was the one who was emotionally attached to someone in one of the hospital rooms. It was odd.

He had to stop himself from knocking on the already ajar door, reminding himself that Usagi probably expected him. Only, much to his surprise, when he slipped into the dimmed room his Usa-ko was fast asleep. He was more than elated to see that her cheeks had their usual rosiness, her mouth was wide open, and she was snoring- there was even a bit of drool running down the side of her cheek. But most of all, under the blanket that was pulled just above her abdomen, he could see that she was still pregnant.

He let out a sigh of relief as he pulled up a chair just beside her bed, and grabbed a hold of her hand, being mindful of the IV they had inserted in her arm to keep her hydrated. It's not like he didn't believe the doctor's words, but it was always nice to see that everything was alright.

He pressed a kiss to her forehead but quickly pulled away when he heard a soft groan coming from Usagi. He watched as she blinked with heavy eyes, and tried to take in her surroundings. She turned to him and blinked once more- gently tilting her head the side, trying to figure out what exactly had happened.

"W-where?" She whispered, and he watched as she glanced down at the IV in her arm.

He could see the realization dawn on her as she tried to quickly sit up, luckily Mamoru had anticipated Usagi's reaction- and he had already placed his hands on her narrow shoulders, gently pushing her back on the bed.

"Mamo-chan?" Usagi whispered, as she pressed her palm against her forehead and tried to remember what happened. When it finally dawned on her, she turned to Mamoru and tears had already begun to run down her cheeks. "Chibi-Usa! The baby Mamo-chan, is she- is she.."

Mamoru placed his hands on Usagi's cheeks. "She's fine, but I need you to calm down for a little bit and I'll tell you what's wrong. She was perfectly fine, and the girls got to you, thanks to Luna."

Usagi closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, and nodded. Her hand had found it's way to her abdomen and she seemed to content to feel that there was indeed still a baby in there.

"What happened?" Usagi asked.

"You were dehydrated and exhaustion, that's why you fainted." Mamoru explained. "As for the pain, the doctor said it may be from stress. I know you haven't been sleeping well, and I think I know why you're stressed."

"It's everything." Usagi mumbled.

"What?" Mamoru asked.

"It's the future.. it's the fact that her room wasn't- still isn't completely finished, it's the fact that I don't know if I'm mature enough to take care of myself half the time, so how am I supposed to be a decent mother." Usagi took in a shaky breath as she counted on her fingers. "And I'm always so lonely and needy, so I thought.. why not do something for myself for once and just finish this room."

"But Usa-ko.."

"And because of that, I put her life in danger." Usagi sobbed. "I could have killed our baby."

"You could have harmed yourself." Mamoru corrected, grabbing a hold of her hand. "I thought we had this settled, I thought these feelings of inadequacy were forgotten, Usa-ko? Why haven't you told me?"

"They are for a bit, but then I'm alone and then I just think about it.." Usagi shook her head. "It's like you convince me and then it's all forgotten. I just thought if I could finish everything by myself.. If I could do more than just sit around maybe I would-"

"Be a better mother." Mamoru finished.

"Oh, Mamo-chan, I try so hard not to cling to you but I miss you so much when you're gone." Usagi whimpered. "And the girls have been busy with something.. and I've been so lonely."

"I'm sorry." Mamoru said lamely, pressing his hand against her cheek. "I didn't know you were so lonely."

"It's not your fault, I would never stop you from doing what you love." Usagi responded.

"No, but when I am home I'm always on the computer reading medical journals and studying.. and never really being there." Mamoru said. "That won't be the case anymore, the doctor said that for the rest of this week and a bit of the next you'll have to take it easy. I promise that I'll be there, and if I'm not I'll make sure someone is."

"I love you, Mamo-chan." Usagi smiled, wiping her tears away with her hand.

"I love you too, Usa-ko." Mamoru replied, squeezing her other hand. "But if these feelings continue will you promise to talk to someone, don't let them build up like this any longer."

"I promise.. Oh, and Mamo-chan?" Usagi asked.

"Mm?"

"Are you going to stay here with me tonight?" Usagi asked.

"Oh, Odango-atama that may be the dumbest thing you've ever asked me."

He laughed when she smacked him the arm.

* * *

"We should do something special!" Minako spoke up suddenly, earning glances from the three other girls sitting around her.

After Mamoru had went to see Usagi, they had all left but not before making a quick stop at the gift store and making sure their signs of affection was sent to their leader at the as soon as possible. Now they sat at a cafe, nursing various coffees, but it was Minako who had been lost in thought since leaving the hospital; she hadn't even bought one of those horrible (as Rei would put it) fruity drinks that she loved so much.

"What do you have in mind?" Makoto asked quietly. She subconsciously looked over at the older man at the next table who had gave them quite a filthy look when Minako had spoke up a bit louder than socially accepted at that hour.

"I mean, she was really stressed about the nursery, right?" Minako said, waiting until the other girls nodded. "Well, then why don't we make a quick stop to the store and decorate it ourselves."

"That's a great, great plan but it has a few flaws." Ami winced. "First, how are we supposed to get into their apartment when I know I locked it on our way out, and our decorating is a bit limited because they're renting."

"Also, we are planning a baby shower for Usagi-chan and I bought her one of those cute baby swaddle thingy-s and, quite frankly, I'm pretty proud of my present and would like to give it to her at the baby shower." Makoto explained, ignoring Ami's silent amusement at 'baby swaddle thingy-s'.

"Not all at once guys, sheesh." Minako mumbled, but she shook her head and went right back to being cheerful. "Okay, one, I know a few things about picking a lock. Two, we can all add a little touch, and three.. Mako-chan, we can just buy a few things for the baby's room, fold clothes and so on. Just y'know.. help."

"Such an idea from you, Minako-chan.. I thought you didn't like children." Rei smiled, nudging her friend.

"I don't." Minako said simply. "But I love Usagi-chan, and I love Chibi-Usa-chan.. and anything we can do to protect them is worth it. After all, we are her guardians and that's not a duty that ends when the monsters are gone."

Minako made eye contact with her fellow guardians, and they nodded as she met their gaze. Makoto put a strong hand on Minako's shoulder and smiled at the blonde proudly.

"Spoken like a true leader, Sailor V." She said.

"Also, how the hell do you know how to pick a lock?" Rei asked, sending a confused yet scared look to Minako.

The blonde, in return, simply flipped her hair and winked.

When they finished their coffee and left, the car ride back was quite loud due to Minako telling everyone how this 'Operation: Make Usagi-chan smile again' plan was going to go down. Makoto partially blamed herself for giving Minako such a big head. But, no one dared to say anything because apparently Minako knew how to pick a lock which was quite impressive if Makoto did say so herself.

After a quick stop at a nearby store, the girls picked up everything they would need to make the nursery even better. Rei had nearly killed the clerk who kept rudely reminding them that the store closed at midnight and they only had five minutes, Makoto was half temped to let her. Rei had spotted a rather beautiful rocking chair she knew Usagi would love, Makoto went for a simple rocking horse, Minako a mobile with the planets ('Aww venus should be bigger,' she had pouted), and Ami with a beautiful bookshelf that required assembly because Ami loved complicated of course.

Now Rei was nearly having a heart attack as Minako temped to unlock a door using a hair pin. Ami had her face buried in her hands mumbling on about getting arrested and breaking an entering, and Makoto was stuck shining the flashlight down on the doorknob.

But sure enough the door opened and Minako gave a satisfied smirk turning towards her friends, and spinning around on her heel.

"Let's get started."

* * *

Mamoru didn't listen to Usagi's mumbling as he carried her up the stairs, to their apartment. As far as he was concerned, walking up the stairs was way to much exertion for his wife who had been ordered to stay off of her feet. But it did prove to be a struggle, because Usagi's hands were full with 'get well cards' and a teddy bear given that was given to Usagi by her dotting friends.

When they got to the top of the stairs, he placed Usagi gently on her feet and the blonde adjusted the presents in her arms, before turning to the door of their home. Mamoru could barely contain his smile as he opened the door; luckily, Ami had the bright idea to call him up and tell him about the plan. He was thankful that Ami had let him in on the idea.

"The doors unlocked?" Usagi asked.

"I guess so, it will be okay, Usa-ko." Mamoru reassured, nodding to himself in agreement.

Usagi eyed him suspiciously, feeling as if something was amiss. Wasn't she the one who always saw the best in people? Where was the Mamoru who would examine the house as if he was searching for a villain.

"It's sure nice to be home!" Mamoru said rather loudly, stretching his arms over his head.

Usagi narrowed her eyes as she placed the gifts down on the table. Now he was just being weirder, what was up with this man today? Wasn't she the one who took a fall? She should be the weird one. She figured it was from sleeping on the uncomfortable hospital chair for a whole night. Even though it wasn't Usagi's fault, she had offered more than once for him to sleep with her.

"Are you an alien?" Usagi mumbled.

"What?" He chuckled.

"Nothing.." She sighed and looked around, failing to find an excuse as to why she needed to be up for a little longer. "I guess I'll get to resting. I'm a bit tired so maybe I could use a nice nap."

"Wait a second." Mamoru said quickly.

"What is it?" Usagi asked.

"Just- Just close your eyes okay. I want to show you something." He stammered, he sighed when Usagi looked at him even more suspiciously, if that was even possible. "Close your eyes, Usa-ko."

Usagi slowly covered her eyes, and Mamoru placed his hands on her shoulders in order to properly guide her to the room. When they were in front of the door, which as adorned by a sign that said 'Usa's room' with a rabbit just beside the beautiful lettering. Mamoru opened the door, and found the girls were ready to surprise their best friend.

"Open your eyes, Usa-ko." Mamoru smiled.

The blonde pulled her hands away from her eyes, and to say her mouth instantly fell open would be an understatement. The room was decorated even more than before she left, the crib was adjusted in the corner to make more space for a rocking chair, a small horse, and a beautiful shelf that now held folded baby clothes assorted by color. She continued to stare, and her friends stared back at her in anticipation. Of course they knew that Usagi would have been thankful if they would have just folded the clothes for her, but they were a bit worried for her well-being.

"Did we break her?" Makoto asked.

"Don't give birth in here Usagi-chan, I'll faint." Minako said, shaking her head quickly. Luckily, Ami had knowingly grabbed Rei's left hand before she smack herself in the forehead out of shame for Minako.

"Y-You guys!" Usagi wailed, tears instantly falling down her cheeks, she pulled her friends into a hug. "This is so sweet, and I'm so happy! It's beautiful and I can't believe you would do this for me!"

"There are the tears." Rei smiled, hugging her friend back.

"I'm just so happy!" Usagi sobbed. "Look at all these gifts."

"Well there's more where that came-" Makoto went to say, but a quick pinch from Rei was all it took to remind her that Usagi didn't know about that yet. "I mean, I'm sure there will be some more stuff in your future.. maybe."

"How can repay you?" Usagi asked, pulling away.

"Don't, baka." Rei snapped, but her face grew gentle once more. "You can repay us by resting and not scaring us like you did yesterday."

Usagi nodded at Rei, and hugged everyone once more before allowing herself to be led out of the room by Mamoru; he turned around and gave the girls one more thankful look before disappearing around the corner with Usagi.

When the couple left the girls let out a tired sigh. They had been up all night making sure everything was perfect, and watching in amazement as Ami managed to assemble a shelf all by herself.

"She's happy, that makes me happy." Minako smiled.

They all nodded in agreement.

"But.. Ami-chan?" Minako continued.

"Yes?"

"I can't get that mobile to work, at all.."

This time, Ami smacked herself in the forehead.

They would have to meet up at Rei's house after leaving the apartment, because there were still arrangements to make, a cake to bake, and guests to invite.

They had a party to plan.

* * *

4,000 words. Sorry you had to go through that but GUESS WHAT?

No more angst for awhile.

All happy days.

You're welcome.

Please review


	17. The thing about priorities

**Disclaimer: I don't own ****_Sailor Moon_**

_I know you were all expecting a chapter about the senshi's party for Usagi, but, alas, that will not be until the next chapter. But I come with good news! I have this entire week off from work, not today, because today is Sunday- but I'll have more time to write. Yay! _

_This chapter is a lot of UsaMamo fluff because everyone who knows me (or follows me on tumblr (by the way you can totally follow me on tumblr at .com)) knows that my top two favorite things are Usagi and UsaMamo. It was originally from a story I wrote, but didn't post because I'm insecure as you all have realized by now._

_Anyway, I haven't counted all of the votes but I'm pretty sure option 2 is winning. As some of you have pointed out, if option 2 wins I will need a bridge between this story and the sequel. Which, I'm planning that right now. _

_So vote if you still haven't. _

_Thank you guys, the last chapter had so many reviews! I was so surprised. This story is the most reviewed story I've ever had and it's done so much to raise my confidence in my writing. Please know that I read every review and the nice long ones are so sweet that I would like to get some of them framed so I could hang them on my wall! :D_

_On with the story._

_This chapter is a bit shorter than others_

* * *

(28 weeks)

"Hey, Chiba-san!"

Mamoru was about to walk out of the hospital when three boisterous voices stopped him in his tracks. He turned around quickly and barely suppressed an annoyed sigh as three of his co-workers approached him. They were nice, but they didn't quite understand Mamoru. The men were a year younger than he was and didn't have intentions on settling down anytime soon, and they didn't seem to understand why Mamoru chose to. They much preferred to stay bachelors for as long as possible, and Mamoru had thought on many occasions that Minako would get along with them very well.

"We were going to go out for a round of drinks tonight and wanted to know if you would like to come with us?" The taller of the three asked.

Oh, great. He would really prefer to get home to Usagi. Ever since her hospital visit a week ago, Mamoru had been around to help her whenever he could. When he couldn't help her, one of the senshi came over to keep her company. Even Haruka and Michiru had made an effort to spend more time with Usagi. Mamoru would never forget the image of Haruka falling asleep next to Usagi, a book in her hand from where she had been reading her some kind of story.

Of course, Mamoru would never say anything because Haruka scared him if he was being completely honest.

"I- uh- my wife."

The three seemed to catch on and the shorter one nodded knowingly. "That's right, Mamoru-san is going to be a father soon I almost forgot. Sorry, about that Chiba-san we thought you were free."

"Well, if you happen to be free sometime today just call us up."

Mamoru nodded as they turned around and walked away, one of them cracking some kind of joke and the other two laughing quite loudly.

It didn't really bother as much as it should have, after all the only guy friend he had seemed to be Motoki. If it had been Motoki asking for him to go out for a round of drinks, maybe he would have felt a little bad. Sure, he knew that most of the colleagues considered him to be a cold and distant man who didn't hardly ever laugh, but he had made a promise to Usagi that he would work harder to be there more. So the fact that he couldn't go out every night didn't bother him.

But the fact that most of the guys joked at his expense about how his daughter will most likely have the coldest, humorless, and most boring dad in the world?

That seemed to hurt him more than he would ever admit.

* * *

On this particular day it was Rei who had volunteered to spend the day with Usagi. Mamoru found it funny just how much Rei would complain, mumbling things about 'babysitting a 21-year-old' and 'baka can't take care of herself', but she was the first one to offer her company and the one who seemed to be at their house the most while Mamoru was at work.

When Mamoru walked in, the raven haired girl was half asleep on their sofa watching some kind of sappy soap opera. He couldn't hold back the laugh at the sight of the very proud Rei mouthing wordless to the obvious re-run.

She turned her head quickly when she realized that she wasn't alone, and managed to turn the channel in one move. Mamoru put his hands up innocently when the girl glared at him in order to keep him quiet.

"I'm not judging.." Mamoru reassured. "So what did you and Usa-ko do all day?"

Rei's facial expression went back to normal, and she turned back to the T.V. "We did the usual.. We ate, we watched television, I listened to her cry about how she couldn't see her feet anymore, I painted her fingernails, and.." She broke off in a mumble.

"And?"

"I massaged her ankles, but I swear to everything that is holy Mamoru-san, if you say anything I will find you.." She pointed to him, and glared at him once more, "and I will burn you to a crisp."

"Point taken." Mamoru said, very seriously. "So what do I owe you?"

Rei stood up, and grabbed her bag. She began to walk out, but not before stopping next to Mamoru and placing her hand on his shoulder. "Mamoru-san, you owe me my dignity."

"I'll see what I can do." Mamoru nodded.

Rei sent him a teasing smile, and bid him goodbye. When she left, Mamoru looked around the house and made sure there wasn't anything that needed cleaned. Rei did very well with cleaning up after herself and Usagi, but Minako on the other hand.. there always seemed to be an extra big mess when Minako came over to keep Usagi company. But at least Minako made Usagi smile.

"Mamo-chan, are you home?" He heard Usagi call from their bedroom.

Mamoru smiled to himself and hurried down the hall to their bedroom, peeking around the corner. His wife's bright smile greeted him, and he was glad to see that she wasn't as tired as she had been, and she seemed to be less stressed. She scooted over to make room for Mamoru, and patted the spot next to her. He took a seat next to his expecting wife.

"How was work today, anything interesting happen?" Usagi asked.

He chuckled a bit. Usagi seemed to think that being a doctor was exactly like one of those cheesy doctor shows she always watched, where the nurse falls in love with the head doctor and there are magnificent miracles and tragedies.

Sadly, it wasn't always that interesting.

"Oh yeah, the moon apparently fell from the sky and squashed a lot of people. No one died." He joked. "Although, the hospital was full of people who were wondering why Sailor Moon didn't stop her original home from squashing so many people."

"Did you tell them it's because Sailor Moon has a bratty baby jumping on her bladder?" She responded, pushing the blanket down and placing both of her hands on her round belly.

"Yeah, they said they would let it slide.. this time." He nodded. "So how was your day? Anything interesting happen on that show you and Rei-chan seem so invested in?"

"Yeah, the main character broke up with the beautiful girl.. the one boy found out that his father had actually kidnapped him at a young age." She listed, counting on her fingers- she frowned. "More stuff probably happened but I fell asleep."

Mamoru nodded, and Usagi noticed his face grew serious once more. Maybe it was because they seemed to be tied by some sort of fate that let them in on what the other was feeling, but Usagi automatically knew something was up with her soulmate.

"Is something bothering you Mamo-chan?" Usagi asked, taking a hold of his hand.

"Do you think I'm.." He sighed, "boring?"

"Boring? What brought this up?" Usagi asked.

"Some of my colleagues wanted to me to go out for drinks, and I turned them down because I'd much rather be here." Mamoru explained. "But I just know they think I'm boring. They even crack jokes about how I'll be reading our baby medical journals instead of bed time stories.."

"You didn't have to turn them down for me, Mamo-chan." Usagi pouted.

Mamoru placed his hand on her belly and smiled down at his wife. "I'd much rather be here with you, and her. It just bothers me because I don't want to be the type of father who doesn't know how to have fun."

"You shouldn't be insecure, Mamo-chan you're the funnest guy in the world!" Usagi smiled, tossing her hands in the air for emphasis. "You just have your priorities straight which is really good, because I'm not one-hundred percent reliable all of the time, so you're there to help me.. and I love you for that."

Mamoru nodded, and placed a kiss on the top of Usagi's nose, making her giggle. There was a strong kick to where his hand was placed on Usagi's bump, and she moved her hand to be on top of his.

"See? She even agrees." Usagi nodded to herself.

Mamoru suddenly got an idea that could help prove that he wasn't always serious and brooding.

"You wanna play mountain monster?" Mamoru asked.

Usagi pulled a face and tilted her head to the side. "Mountain monster?"

He placed his index and middle finger on her stomach and acted like they were feet. She watched him with slight amusement as he made his way to the top of her belly, pretending his fingers was a tiny little mountain man.

"Oh, I sure hope there aren't any mountain monsters up here!" He said in a loud voice..

Usagi caught on and joined in, pretending her two fingers were some kind of mountain monster. She barely held back a giggle. "BEWARE I AM THE MOUNTAIN MONSTER AND I WILL EAT WHOEVER DARES CLIMB MY GIGANTIC.. but not that gigantic.. MOUNTAIN."

"Ah, a mountain monster!" Mamoru replied.

"You know I should kinda be offended that you're comparing me to a mountain, Mamo-chan." Usagi replied.

"Yeah, but at least I'm proving I'm not boring, right?" He smiled.

Usagi grinned and nodded in response.

Yeah, her Mamo-chan was the funniest, coolest guy in the entire world.

* * *

**_Do you have cavities? ;) _**

**_Please review _**


	18. The thing about hormones and parties

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon**

_Here it is, valuable readers, a senshi filled chapter that will make you laugh, cry, and say 'aww'. I knew I wanted to make this chapter for awhile, ever since I started to write this story. It was actually the chapter I decided right away that had to happen. Of course because Usagi needs a little party for all of work she's been doing, and because I needed a little senshi fluff to make everything a lot happier. _

_The Outers will be in this chapter, do not fret. But most of my focus is on the inner senshi, because their relationship with Usagi has always been the closest as you all probably know. And, there is a little hint of 'nervous Mamoru' in this chapter because that's always fun to write._

_Guess what? _

_I only have about six more chapters left of this story. _

_It's been fun! _

* * *

_(30 weeks) _

To say that Usagi felt more like a three-year-old than a grown woman was an understatement. Mamoru had been fretting ever since Rei even brought up the idea of Usagi spending the night with her and the girls for old times sake. It took a large amount of convincing-and the reassurance that Ami would be there- to make Mamoru okay with Usagi leaving the house for the first time since she was allowed to do more than lay in bed.

"So if you feel even the tiniest amount of discomfort, do you know what to do?" Mamoru asked, driving Usagi to Rei's with extra caution. It was a bit amusing just how many people were honking at him for going so slow.

"Cross my legs." Usagi mumbled.

"NO!" Mamoru gasped. "No, Usa-ko, you tell one of the girls- preferably Ami-chan."

"Loud and clear." Usagi responded.

"And just breath, okay? Just remember how to breath and one of the girls will call me and everything will be alright." He reassured her even though she wasn't the one having a near panic attack.

"Mamo-chan, I'm not three." She pouted.

Mamoru sighed and shot a quick glace at his wife as she crossed her arms and pouted. He prayed to himself that she wouldn't burst out in tears like she had been doing for most of the week. After all, it was normal for hormones to heighten as the due date grew closer. In fact, just a few days before she had been crying at the fact that he still owned that "horrible pea-green jacket she hated so much" and that it "made her sick, and the baby sick."

He tried not to take her words to heart, but that one had struck a cord.

"I know you're not.." He finally said, "but I worry."

"Yeah, but we only went to one of those stupid breathing classes once, cause everyone was far too happy even though they couldn't see their feet!" She exclaimed loudly, anger etched on her face at the thought that anyone could be happy to have their sense of gravity messed up. "And we still have two more months of this, the kid knows not to mess with time or whatever."

Mamoru decided to keep his mouth shut and not remind Usagi that 'the kid' didn't know anything about time yet and the future was not set in stone. But that would probably make her angry. When she entered her seventh month of pregnancy, she had taken to calling Usa 'this kid' and 'this damn child' instead of the endearing names she had called her before. He figured it came when she stopped being able to sleep so well and when her ankles decided to swell.

They remained quiet for the rest of the trip to Rei's. When they arrived, Mamoru put the car in park and looked at Usagi once more. He was trying to find the right words to tell her just how nervous he was without upsetting her.

"I'll be careful." She said, grabbing a hold of his hand and smiling gently at him like she could read his mind. "You do so much for me, Mamo-chan. I don't know what I did to deserve you."

He could already see the tears welling up in her eyes.

Hormones were truly unpredictable.

"I know, but I'm definitely walking you up all of those steps." He smiled back.

"EH? You really don't trust me do you, Mamoru!" She snapped pulling her hand away.

Truly unpredictable.

* * *

Rei felt like she was going to pull out all of her hair, and her head was already aching from smacking herself in the forehead a multitude of times. If it wasn't for Makoto making another cake at the last minute, Rei would have probably strangled Minako.

"Oh, come on, it wasn't that bad." Minako smiled.

"The cake said 'Happy it's a boy' Minako-chan," She seethed, "happy. it's. a. boy."

"Okay, maybe it was that bad, but at least it was fixed!" Minako said pointing towards Makoto who was adding the finishing touches to the cake. "Good thing we have Mako-chan! Good ol' Mako-chan. Her heart is as big as Jupiter!"

"M-Minako-chan, that would be very dangerous to have an enlarged heart." Ami mumbled.

"It's an expression of speech, Ami-chan." Minako rolled her eyes.

"Figure of speech." Ami corrected.

"Whatever." She replied. "Anyway, what kind of games do we have planned, I know that's I've been working hard with pin the diaper on the baby. But we have to have more games than that!"

Rei smiled proudly as she turned around and grabbed a long piece of string, Minako looked at her with an expression of utter confusion and Rei took a deep breath as she tried to explain the game to Minako.

"You try to guess how big Usagi's baby bump is, right?" Rei explained. "You cut your piece of string and whoever gets the closest gets a prize. It's very fun, and very competitive so watch out."

"What do we get if we win?" Minako asked.

"An entire pie of your choice from my bakery.." Makoto explained. "Free."

Minako balled up her fist and hit it against the palm of her hand, a look of pure determination on her face. "I guess it's settled then, comrades." She stuck her finger to the sky, going into full 'dramatic Minako' mode. "I must win."

"You can get a free pie anyway, Minako-chan." Makoto rolled her eyes

"Too late. I must win." Minako said simply.

They were so busy with planning the party for the next day that they barely heard the loud knock on the door. Rei stopped what she was doing and held her hand up to silence the others. When she heard the impatient knock that was definitely Usagi's, she went into action.

"Quick, let's go in the other room." She ordered, practically pushing the other three girls out, but not before Makoto could put the cover over the cake to keep it safe during the night.

When they were in the hallway, Rei turned and locked the door with the key that she had remembered to grab just that morning. That way, if Usagi happened to wander during the night, she wouldn't walk in on the supplies for the party.

Rei hurried to the door, the girls right behind her. She opened it and leaned against the door frame very breathlessly. She was greeted by a flustered Mamoru and an angry looking Usagi who had been getting ready for her next impatient round of knocks before Rei opened the door.

"What a surprise, Mamoru-san." She said.

"Yeah, I thought I would help Usa-ko up the stairs, considering there are so many." Mamoru explained.

Usagi opened her mouth to speak on her behalf, but she was momentarily distracted when Makoto and Ami entered the room carrying bowls full of delicious snacks. The blonde's attention was fully away from Mamoru as she licked her lips and made her way towards her favorite foods.

"I need to talk to you." Mamoru said quickly.

Rei rolled her eyes and chuckled. "Mamoru, I know.. if anything happens call you. Don't worry she'll be fine."

"It's not that." Mamoru shook his head, motioning Rei to come closer. "Okay, so Usa-ko has been a bit hormonal lately.. She's been having spouts of tears and getting angry over little things so just be careful."

Rei giggled once more and tried to push a protesting Mamoru out of the door. "Usagi-chan will be fine, don't you worry. Her hormones are no match for Hino Rei, Mamoru-san."

Before he could finish his sentence, she shut the door behind him. She turned to the other girls who were watching in amazement as Usagi attempted to down the entire bowl of snacks. Everything was fine until she spotted Minako eyeing Usagi's belly, a look of pure determination on her face. Everything happened at once, and Rei was unable to stop it.

Rei remembered that stupid game; Minako still wanted to win that stupid game.

"Usagi-chan.. how big do you think your belly is.. like around?" Minako asked.

Usagi nearly choked on the food she was stuffing in her mouth, Makoto turned to Minako and glared, Ami nearly fainted, and Rei was smacking herself in the forehead harder than she had ever smack herself before.

"What?" Minako asked innocently.

"I GET THAT I'M FAT NOW BUT YOU DON'T HAVE TO BRING IT UP WHEN I'M HAVING FUN!" Usagi practically screeched, tilting her head back and sobbing earnestly, tears streaming down her face.

This was going to be a long night.

* * *

"That stupid girl is lucky." Rei mumbled to herself as she fluffed the pillow and placed it on _her _own bed.

She turned to the sleeping bags that were on the ground, and back to the perfectly made bed that she should be sleeping on. But, of course, Usagi was pretty far along and it wouldn't be comfortable for her to sleep on the ground. So Rei, being the gracious friend that she was, agreed to sleep on the ground in order for Usagi to sleep comfortably.

She plopped down next to the other girls (minus Usagi who had to use the bathroom.. again), who were in the middle of watching some kind of cheesy horror movie- snacking on popcorn as they went. It had been a pretty good night, after Usagi got done crying. After that crying spell she had been in a pretty happy mood, laughing and snacking with the rest of her friends. Even though Rei could see Minako calculating just how much length she was going to have to cut off of her string.

"What'd I miss?" Usagi asked, a bit too loudly, because the girls jumped when they heard her voice.

Rei decided to lend a hand when she saw Usagi put her hand on her lower back, attempting to sit back down on the ground with a weak grunt. The raven haired girl took a hold of Usagi's arm in order to further help her

"Well, if you didn't have to pee every five minutes." Minako joked.

Usagi turned serious, and Rei thought for a minute that she may get angry again. Much to her surprise, Usagi just laughed and waved her hand dismissively. "Yeah, yeah.. Well, she likes to jump on my bladder sometimes. It's okay though, I love her."

Usagi patted her bump affectionately.

"This is weird." Makoto said suddenly.

"What do you mean?" Ami asked.

"I mean did you ever think that it would be like this?" Makoto said, looking around at the other girls. "When were fourteen and we spent our days looking at wedding dresses and giggling about boys.. Did you ever think that we would be doctors, interns, bakers, superstars, and- and mothers? Did you ever think that we would actually get to this point?"

"I think deep down we hoped that it would be like this.. But we were always so busy fighting evil. I never really knew if we would be alive to get to this point, to be honest. I hoped, and I tried my best to believe but a part of me was always worried that every time we fought it would be our last battle." Usagi confessed.

"Well, we made it!" Minako said, wrapping an arm around Usagi's shoulder. "We made it because we had these dreams of being businesswomen, doctors, bakers, superstars, and mothers."

"We're living in the future." Rei nodded. "And Chibi-Usa is the beginning of that future. So if this is our last slumber party before Crystal Tokyo, so be it. We have Usagi-chan leading us we'll be fine."

The senshi nodded in agreement.

"You guys!" Usagi sobbed, pulling Rei and Minako in a hug- motioning for Makoto and Ami to join in to.

"Oh, come on, don't cry!" Rei yelled, but there was no hint of malice in her voice.

Usagi didn't stay awake very long that night; she lasted just before the real killer of the horror movie was announced, and Rei didn't notice Usagi fell asleep until she felt Usagi's face against her shoulder. She was the one who had to carry the blonde to the bed, even though she grumbled the entire way.

It wasn't long until the other girls fell asleep as well. Rei should have fallen asleep too, but the floor felt a bit hard and she couldn't quite get her brain to be quiet. The conversation they had earlier was still fresh in her brain. She was so lost in thought she barely realized that Usagi was tapping on her shoulder. Rei turned her head towards Usagi and found the blonde was looking down at her, eyes tired.

"What's wrong?" Rei mumbled.

"I can't sleep." Usagi yawned.

"Close your eyes." Rei snapped.

"I'm lonely, and I forgot my pillow that makes it easier for me to sleep." Usagi whined. "Also the baby seems to think that it's daytime because she won't stop moving around in here."

"So?" Rei asked.

"Lay down up here with me?" Usagi begged.

"No, Usagi-chan, I'm not sleeping in that tiny bed with you- I'm sorry." She said, crossing her arms.

"Please, Rei-chan?" Usagi pouted.

It was that pout that forced Rei up from her spot on the floor, and next to Usagi. The blonde smiled and turned on her side, wrapping her arms around Rei, who was lying on her back trying to ignore the fact that she could feel the small nudges coming from inside her friend, and it would probably keep her up all night.

"Thank you, Rei-chan." Usagi yawned.

"Okay, now go to sleep." Rei grumbled.

Usagi nodded and rested her head on Rei's shoulder. The raven haired girl tried to take her on advice and close her eyes but her mind kept thinking about the future and everything it had in store. She shook her head and sighed, it wasn't like her to be so anxious. She turned her head towards Usagi and knew that the blonde wasn't asleep.

"Hey, Usagi-chan."

"Hm?"

"Are you scared?" She asked.

"About what?"

"The future!" Rei said loudly, but she quickly put her hand over her mouth when she a disturbed mumble coming from one of the other senshi. "The future, Usagi-chan, like are you worried.. Y'know what, nevermind. It was a dumb question."

Usagi smiled and patted Rei's head affectionately. "There's no such thing as a dumb question, Rei-chan."

Rei rolled her eyes and forced her hair back down from where Usagi had made a few strands stand up. "Well, if it's not a stupid question- answer it. Are you scared of the future?"

"Well.. yeah I'm scared terrified actually." Usagi nodded. "I'm scared that something will go wrong, I'll be a bad mother.. Maybe something will be wrong with Usa when she's born. I'm really scared."

"Usagi-chan.." Rei whispered.

"But I was scared when I was Sailor Moon and through all of those tough battles, I somehow made it. That has to mean something." Usagi stated. "It helped that I had a certain fire senshi pushing me towards my duties even if I was kicking and screaming. I know that you and the others will be with me no matter what."

Rei waited until after Usagi was done speaking to do something very uncharacteristic. She threw her arms around her best friend in the world, making Usagi squeak in response; Usagi hugged her back.

"You know I'm mostly scared of actually having the kid." Usagi said suddenly. "I can't even stub my toe without crying, and I'm pretty sure having a baby hurts worst than stubbing your toe."

Rei pulled away and tilted her head in confusion. "Did you not think about that when you actually.. you know.. Got pregnant."

"No, not really."

"You're dumb."

"HEY, we were having a moment Rei-chan!" She yelled. "A MOMENT!"

"Will you two shut up!" Makoto yelled from the floor.

"Sorry." They both mumbled.

* * *

Usagi had been more than surprised when she woke up to find that everyone had left. Even her partner in crime, Minako, had left. She had at least expected Minako to sleep in as well, and that made her feel slightly betrayed. They didn't even wake her up; they rolled up their sleeping bags and left. It wasn't until Usagi scanned the room that she found the note that Rei had left her.

Usagi sighed and scooted to the other side of the bed, retrieving the note that Rei had written in an obvious hurry. Stupid Rei, she couldn't even take the time to leave her a nice note.

_Dear Usagi-chan,_

_When your lazy butt wakes up, please meet us outside._

_P.S: Thanks for keeping me up all night, baka. I couldn't sleep because you were hogging the entire bed, mumbling in your sleep and your gigantic belly was pushing me out of my own bed._

_P.S.S: Please put clothes on, don't come outside in your pajamas._

_Love,_

_The Generous, beautiful, Rei-chan._

Usagi stuck her tongue out at the note as if Rei could somehow sense it. She grumbled to herself. Didn't they know it was almost impossible to get out of bed by herself these days? The blonde braced her weight on her arms and forced herself to stand. She walked to the bag she had left in the corner and retrieved the dress she had packed for that day.

She was even more surprised when she walked outside to find that none of the girls were in the front. She frowned even more, if that was humanely possible, and started making her way towards the back.

"I swear if you guys are in trouble I will scream!" Usagi yelled- eyes on the ground. "I will-"

"SURPRISE!"

Usagi screamed.

When she had arrived at Rei's the day before she hadn't imagined that they would throw a party for her. They had obviously worked very hard, because the yard was decorated beautifully with balloons, a huge banner, a beautiful cake, and tons of presents. Not to mention she had no idea how they had managed to get everyone to come. Her mama was there, many old friends from school,Haruka, Setsuna, Michiru, and Hotaru had made it.. Even Naru who Usagi hadn't seen for a good few years.

The last Usagi knew, Naru had married Umino.

"I think we've surprised her too much." Minako said to Ikuko who smiled in return.

"Just wait for it.." Rei mumbled.

"OH MY GOD!" Usagi sobbed, flinging her head back and crying.

This was too much. Usagi could feel her mother hold onto her, laughing quietly, and the girls joining in on the hug- even Haruka had been pulled into the hug, not that she minded.

Rei pulled away, keeping Usagi at arms length- her face stern. "Hey, you can not cry for this entire party, okay? I had to sit on Mako-chan's shoulders to put that banner up and I thought I was going to die."

Usagi nodded and wiped her tears away, laughing quietly at the thought of the proud Rei having to sit on Makoto's shoulders to put up a bright pink banner that read 'It's a Girl!'

It hadn't taken long for Usagi to finally stop crying. After all, there was a beautiful cake that Makoto had worked so very hard on, and Haruka watched in amazement as Usagi downed her fourth piece. She would have kept watching if it weren't for Michiru pulling on her arm to keep her from staring any longer.

Usagi had finally got to chance to catch up with Naru, who had been shocked when she found out that Usagi was pregnant.

Turns out, Naru herself had a one-year-old daughter.

Then there were the gifts.

Usagi had never been so happy to receive gifts in her life. The outer senshi all purchased something meaningful for the baby; a little bracelet that Chibi-Usa could wear when she grew older, all with a small charm to represent Setsuna, Hotaru, Michiru, and Haruka. It wasn't until after the party that Hotaru had shown Usagi her actual present which was a photo-book of all the pictures she and Chibi-Usa had taken together. It was sweet, and Usagi promised the girl that when the time came Chibi-Usa would receive the gift.

Makoto was prud to finally be able to give Usagi the 'baby swaddle thing-y' (as Makoto had put it) that she had so happily picked out, Ami had bought story books for when the baby grew older, Minako had bought children CDs, and Rei had knit a variety of small sweaters for Usa to wear ("I had to learn how to knit, Usagi-chan. Be happy.")

The gifts had been wonderful, and when it finally came down to the games.. Minako was ready to win. They had to convince Usagi that the game wasn't meant to call her fat, and she almost cried again at the fact that the game even existed in the first place. Only three of the girls decided to play; Naru, Minako, and Hotaru were given their strings.

"Usagi-chan, hold still!" Minako snapped, holding the string up.

"This is embarrassing!" Usagi blushed, covering her face with her hands.

"I think I got it!" Naru said triumphantly.

"No!" Minako whined.

Naru's string had been too short.

"Thanks Naru-chan." Usagi smiled, at least Naru didn't think she was that big.

"Leave it to Aino Minako." Minako giggled.

Minako's string was entirely too long, and the blonde had smiled sheepishly at her pregnant friend, whose face was turning a bright red. Usagi had been lifting her hands to presumably choke Minako when Hotaru spoke up.

"I think I may have it." Hotaru said.

Hotaru's measurement was exact.

"Good job, Hotaru-chan!" Makoto said, placing a hand on Hotaru's shoulder. "You can come by my bakery at anytime, and get a free pie."

Minako fell to her knees, and looked up at the sky dramatically. "MY PIE!"

"I can't believe you kept your string that long, Minako-chan!" Usagi yelled.

Everyone laughed as Minako scrambled away, as if Usagi was actually in any condition to chase her.

Rei Hino looked on proudly as her friend laughed in delight. The future was going to be fine. No matter what happened, Rei Hino wouldn't leave Usagi's side. She knew deep down that her friend was going to make a great Queen, and one awesome mama.

* * *

_MY SENSHI FEELINGS! THEY'RE EVERYWHERE._

_Also, that string game, I played it at my sister's baby shower when I was nine years old. I got the string right on her belly button, and won a bunch of soaps (which was a pretty boring prize for a nine-year-old. Now that I'm going to college, soap would be a gift from above.) I made all of those soccer moms so envious. Best accomplishment ever. _

_Anyway, I really REALLY love Usagi and Rei's dynamic. Of course I know that Usagi has an amazing relationship with every single one of the girls. But the other's are very open on how much they value Usagi; Rei is a bit more subtle with her feelings which I love. Rei is a natural born leader, and I think she is critical of Usagi at first but deep down we all know Rei thinks Usagi is an amazing leader and friend._

_Please review._

_Next chapter is 32 weeks (we're getting so close!) _


	19. The thing about beauty

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon.. Nineteen chapters later and I still don't own it, what a shock.**_

_I have to work tomorrow until 11:30 pm. It's official. I hate my job. Not because I have to work until 11:30 but because everyone makes me mad. I have to put in my 2 weeks in August because I start college, and I have to move up to Indianapolis. I don't even know how to be like 'lol it was nice while it lasted, friends, but I'm moving onto higher education.'_

_Honest to God, I'm not ready for adulthood. I want to be a kid again._

_Enough about me and my whine-y-ness._

**_Option 2 won! _**_I already have name, an idea for a bridge, and some themes for the next story. **But It's going to be a 3 prat-er. OMG you heard it hear folks, I want this transition to be as smooth as a newborn's bottom that I'm going to split it in three parts which means you have to put with me for a bit longer. **  
_

* * *

(32 weeks)

Rei had been more than surprised when Usagi called her early one rainy morning. She had been cozy, wrapped up in her warm sheets when the loud ringing of her phone pulled her out of her sleep. She had reached for the phone frantically, not bothering to even get up. It wasn't until she heard Usagi's voice on the other end did she sit up so quickly she nearly gave herself whiplash.

"Usagi-chan, are you okay?" She gasped into the phone, looking at the clock and realizing it was nine in the morning and Usagi would never get up this early unless there was something wrong with her.

Usagi had simply giggled, confusing Rei to no end. "Of course I'm okay, Rei-chan. I need you to take me to the hospital."

Rei was already out of bed when she said that, resting the phone between her shoulder and her cheek and wrestling to get her pants on. She didn't bother to put on a bra or shoes, hoping to get to her friend as soon as possible. Usagi sounded delirious with her giggling and nonchalant behavior.

"When did they start?" Rei snapped.

"When did what start?"

"YOUR CONTRACTIONS, BAKA!" Rei yelled.

"My- what?" Usagi asked, confused, and then she laughed again making Rei cease her struggle of getting her jeans on. "Oh, Rei-chan. I'm not having a baby. We still have another month, silly. I need to go to the hospital Mamo-chan works at, not Juuban."

"You called me at nine in the morning because you needed me to take you to the hospital Mamoru works at?" Rei said, rubbing her forehead in aggravation that she put pants on for nothing. "Usagi-chan, why?"

"Just.. come get me, okay?" Usagi said quickly. "I'll be ready when you get here, bye!"

She hung up before Rei could even protest. Rei grumbled to herself and decided that yes, she would have to put on shoes and a bra. She also decided she could not wait for the baby to finally be born so Usagi could go back to being regular annoying Usagi, not extra annoying pregnant Usagi. These sudden bursts of energy had been popping up all week.

Just the other day Usagi had called everyone declaring that she needed to go shopping now.

AND don't even get Rei started on the fact that a couple nights before Mamoru had called everyone saying Usagi was going into labor, and it turned out to simply be a false alarm. Rei had been that close to calling Setsuna and asking what the hell she was playing at, assuring everyone Chibi-Usa would be born on June 30th.

Rei grabbed her keys and begrudgingly made her way to her car..

And even more begrudgingly made her way to Mamoru and Usagi's.

She didn't even knock, screw knocking, because Usagi was supposed to ready anyway.

Turns out Usagi was true to her word, because the blonde was all smiles when Rei walked in, dressed in a bright sweater and leggings.. like she hadn't woke Rei up very early. Even more surprising was the fact she had two containers of cookies she had apparently baked. Rei looked at the treats in shock as Usagi put the lid on the last container and turned to Rei.

"Ready?" She smiled.

"What the hell?" Rei snapped. "Baka, did you bake all of these cookies? Did you get up really early just to bake all of these cookies?"

"Well.. yeah." Usagi shrugged. "I was _really _hungry for cookies, and then I got this thought why not make cookies for **everyone **who works on Mamo-chan's shift at the hospital. They work so hard for us, it's the least I could do."

Usagi closed her eyes and nodded in agreement with herself, very seriously.

"I.. don't.. who are you?" Rei asked, practically twitching.

"Chiba Usagi." She answered, like the question hadn't been rhetorical.

"You're weird pregnant." Rei mumbled, but decided to indulge her friend's wishes either way. "But I guess there's nothing I can do, let's just go to the hospital and get this over with."

* * *

It was Rei who had to carry both of the cookie containers into the hospital, and to the nurse's station. It wasn't that she minded much, not wanting her best friend to have to carry anything remotely heavy. Usagi was practically skipping (well, as much as she could), and she was greeted by two smiling nurses who obviously knew her as Mamoru's loving wife.

"Good morning Usagi-chan, what did you bring us today?" The older nurse asked, and Rei recognized her as the nurse who had been on duty when Usagi came running in here months before, in order to tell Mamoru the big news.

"Good morning, I've brought everyone cookies made from scratch." Usagi said proudly, motioning to the cookies that Rei had just placed on the desk. "I didn't know how many people were working, so I just made a lot. Make sure Mamo-chan gets some too."

Rei barely suppressed an eye roll. Yeah right.. There were no way these cookies were made from scratch considering the weren't burnt and they actually smelled good. She could feel Usagi gently nudge her to keep quiet when the blonde saw the small smirk on her friend's face.

"Usagi-chan, did you bring us cookies?" Another nurse asked eyeing the batch of treats.

"Yeah, I sure did." She nodded.

Rei turned and rested her cheek on her hand. "She woke up bright and early for some reason and decided to bake."

"It's expected, there's always small bursts of energy with the last two months." The older nurse explained. "But she'll be back to normal in no time, don't worry."

"How are you feeling today?" The younger nurse asked.

"I'm feeling great, awesome, the best!" Usagi smiled. "I still haven't gotten much sleep though."

"Good morning everyone, who am I working with today?" A soft voice asked before the nurse could respond to Usagi's complaints.

The woman was obviously a doctor because she was wearing white hospital coat, a stethoscope around her neck, and a clipboard in her hand. She was stunningly beautiful;; long slender legs, small waist with curves in all the right places. Her eyes were dark as was her hair, much like Rei. Rei looked over at her friend and found the blonde practically had hearts in her eyes.

She did until...

"Chiba-san." The older nurse responded.

Oh, crap.

"Oh, him again?" The woman smiled.

She blushed, her cheeks turning a soft pink as she ran her fingers through her hair like some kind of smitten schoolgirl. Rei slowly turned to Usagi who was shooting daggers at the woman, hand impulsively twitching at her side. Before Usagi could transform into Sailor Moon, eight months pregnant be damned, Rei grabbed a hold of her hand.

"Can I help you guys?" The doctor asked, now noticing the two girls at the front.

Usagi opened up her mouth to say something, but luckily (very luckily), one of the nurses spoke up. "This is Chiba Usagi. Doctor Chiba's wife, she brought us cookies today. She does that a lot."

"Oh." The woman said, smiling. "Chiba-san never mentioned he had a wife, very nice to meet you."

She actually walked around the desk, in order to properly greet Usagi. She stopped and her smile widened even further. "I see that Chiba-san also has a child on the way, very nice to meet you my name is Hayashi Hana, I'm very happy to meet Chiba-san's wife. He's a great doctor."

Rei was incredibly impressed by Usagi's ability to keep a smile plastered on her face all while greeting the woman with a politeness that Rei didn't even know she even possessed.

Maybe she wouldn't be too upset about the fact her husband was working with a beautiful woman.

* * *

"D-did you see her Rei-chan?" Usagi sobbed into her hands. "She was gorgeous, and t-thin! And she didn't have swollen ankles.. a-and she was put together. AND SHE'S A DOCTOR TO TOP IT ALL OFF, a-a doctor that works with my Mamo-chan!"

Rei gently patted her friend on the back as she sobbed. Had she already mentioned that she couldn't wait for Chibi-Usa to be born? If she had to put up with another hormone induced sobbing session, she might not have any more hair.

"Yeah, but Mamoru-san loves you Usagi-chan." Rei said, trying not to sound to exasperated which was easier said than done. "And you're pregnant with his child, that's like.. very appealing for men sometimes."

"BUT MAMO-CHAN IS A WEIRD MAN!" Usagi sobbed, even louder, earning some glances from people who were walking out of the hospital. Rei found this pretty impressive considering they were in her car, with the windows rolled up and the air condition on.

Rei couldn't help but nod in agreement, which Usagi noticed. The blonde starting wailing louder, and Rei realized she would probably need a lot of aspirin after this. Even though, Mamoru truly was a weird man who had no fashion sense and speech for nearly every occasion. She hadn't meant for her harmless nod to cause Usagi, and her ears, so much pain.

"Okay, listen." Rei said, forcing Usagi to look up at her. "You're a really beautiful person, Usagi-chan. You have beautiful eyes, and lovely hair and a nice face. Mamoru-san is obviously very attracted to you because if he wasn't... Well, to be quite frank, if he wasn't attracted to you... Uh.. er... You wouldn't be pregnant right now if he wasn't attracted to you, okay!"

Usagi blushed a deep shade of red and buried her face in her hands. "Rei-chan!"

"Now I'm really hungry, so let's get something to eat and I'll let you buy whatever you want.. on me." Rei offered.

Suddenly, as if the crying and wailing never happened, Usagi looked up and smiled. "Mm, you know.. A milkshake and some crepes really sound good right now. Can I have more than one crepe?"

She really couldn't wait for this kid to be born.

* * *

Usagi seemed in a good mood to Luna when she entered the apartment, calling out to her and Artemis that she was home despite the fact that could very much hear her humming to herself when she came in.

It had surprised Luna when she had awoken to find the bed already made, and Usagi gone. Luckily, the blonde had left her a nearly illegible letter telling her that she had left with Rei to visit Mamoru (at least that's what she assumed she said, most of the kanji Usagi had attempted had been scribbled out and replaced with small doodles). So, of course, Luna being a very lonely cat decided to visit Minako and bring Artemis back with her.

Luna was slightly regretting bringing Artemis back with her.

Usagi had two crepes in her hand, snacking happily on one while she held the other in the hand that wasn't currently occupied. Luna was astounded by just how fast Usagi was downing the crepes; both she and Artemis watched as she managed to finish her second one in record time.

Luna knew not to say anything. Oh, she knew. She had been present for the 'Mamoru's green jacket' tear fest- part one and TWO. She had been there for the 'Mamoru never brings me roses even though he could just make some whenever he wished as Tuxedo Mask', and Luna would admit that she didn't quite understand what that one was about.

Anyway, she wasn't about to point out just how much Usagi had eaten. For someone who had stayed uncharacteristically un-hormonal for most of her pregnancy, Usagi had sure surprised everyone by just how hormonal she had become in her third trimester.

In Artemis' defense, he wasn't present enough to know this.

"Wow, Usagi-chan, you must me hungry." Artemis chuckled, the humor clear in his voice.

But apparently Usagi didn't hear it.

Her face fell and before Luna could scold Artemis, Usagi was sobbing. It was almost funny, with the icing on her face and the crumbs on her sweater. But Luna couldn't find it funny when her ears were hurting from Usagi's wailing.

"THAT'S WHY MAMO-CHAN ISN'T GOING TO LIKE M-ME ANYMORE!" She cried, so loud that Luna could barely understand her. "HANA-SAN IS SO MUCH MORE BEAUTIFUL THAN ME!"

That last 'me' was so prolonged it sounded more like 'meeeee'. Luna jumped off of the sofa in an attempt to sooth her charge, but the blonde was already gone slamming the bedroom door behind her.

Luna turned to Artemis and the white cat was staring at the place where Usagi just was.

"Who's Hana-san?" Artemis asked.

"Does it matter!" Luna snapped.

* * *

Mamoru returned a little more than thirty minutes later, expecting Usagi to be in a great mood considering she had left cookies for everyone at the hospital. But when he entered their home, carrying the two containers Usagi had left, he could tell that wasn't quite the case.

First off, Usagi was nowhere to be found.

Second, Luna was in the middle of scolding Artemis.

"I'm just saying you don't think before you speak!" Luna snapped. "I'm more than surprised Minako-chan hasn't pushed you out of the house yet, how many times have you accidently insulted her?"

"That's different-"

"Whoa, what's going on here." Mamoru chuckled, placing the two containers on the coffee table and turning towards the arguing felines. "Where's Usa-ko?"

Luna turned towards the hallway that led to their bedroom, and then Mamoru could hear the rather loud sniffles of his wife- and he realized that Artemis must have said something to upset Usagi.

"You have Artemis to thank for that." Luna said, turning her head away from said cat.

Mamoru winced a bit as Artemis looked down, guilt written on his face. He knelt down and patted the cat's head lightly. "It's not your fault, buddy. She's been a bit touchy lately I'm sure something else must have set her off. Let me go talk to her."

Mamoru was a bit frightened on what could be on his wife's mind on this particular day. He hoped it wasn't too silly; hopefully she wasn't upset and angry about his wardrobe or something else he couldn't quite fix.

When he entered the room, he almost made it worse by laughing. But to be fair, it was quite a sight to see Usagi huddled under the blankets. She was curled into a tiny ball under the blankets; the only way Mamoru knew it was her was by the small hiccups coming from the shivering figure. Mamoru suppressed his laughter and sat next to his wife, placing a hand on what he assumed to be her back.

"Leave me alone." She whined, attempting to scoot away, but falling short when she realized she had a bump making it hard to move. "I can't even move anymore, I'm so useless!"

"What's wrong?" Mamoru asked. "Why won't you look at me."

"-Ugly." She whispered, so quietly he could barely hear her.

"What?"

"I'M UGLY!" Usagi sobbed.

Mamoru attempted to pull the blanket off of her, but she had an iron grip that made it hard. He only managed to pull it down just enough to see the top of her hair. He sighed and lifted his legs up to rest them on the bed.

"Okay, I guess I'll stay here until you show me your beautiful face." Mamoru responded.

Usagi made a snorting noise and peeked over the blanket slightly, and Mamoru happily took advantage of the opportunity by pulling the blanket away. The blonde squeaked, attempting to cover her face with her hands, but Mamoru had already gently grabbed a hold of her hand, intertwining his fingers with her's. She looked up begrudgingly and he could see by her red cheeks and swollen eyes that she had been crying for awhile.

Maybe it had been the butt of everyone's jokes just how upset she seemed to be getting lately, but for her it was very real. Mamoru realized this with a pang of guilt, as he stared down at his wife.

"Artemis didn't mean whatever he said, Usa-ko." Mamoru explained.

"It's not that." Usagi mumbled, wiping away her tears. "It wasn't that."

"Then what was it?" Mamoru asked.

Usagi sat up, and lifted her legs up slightly in order to look at her toes. "I just feel really gross, because I'm breathless and my face is always red. Not to mention I'm super fat these days. I'll probably never look the same- ever again."

Mamoru placed a hand on her cheek, smiling gently. "That's what this is all about?"

"Yeah, because I went to the hospital and saw how beautiful Hana-san was.. and how excited she was to work with you." She mumbled. "She's pretty, and her waist is small and she probably doesn't cry over everything-"

"Whoa.. wait- Hayashi-san?" Mamoru asked, confused. "You're jealous of Hayashi-san."

Usagi rolled her eyes, as if it was the most obvious thing ever. "Yeah, because I met her today and she was like.. 'Chiba-san never mentioned he had a wife' and then she looked at me like she was super shocked to see this-" she pointed down to her belly- "and then she said 'or a child on the way.'"

Mamoru couldn't help the laugh that escaped him when he heard Usagi try to imitate his co-worker's voice. He was cut short when Usagi sent him a well-deserved glare, and he cleared his throat as he tried to find words to explain how he felt.

"Okay, you are beautiful." Mamoru explained. "Really beautiful- I'm actually always telling all of the nurses at work just how beautiful you are.. And you being pregnant with our child just makes you that much more attractive to me. Especially since you've managed to do it with so much strength and happiness. So don't ever doubt just how beautiful I think you are. If I could I would spend every moment reminding you of that."

Usagi couldn't help the blush that spread across her cheeks as Mamoru placed his hands on her shoulders and kissed her. She let out a whine when he pulled away from the kiss earlier than expected.

He laughed once more, making Usagi very confused.

"I just can't believe.. Hayashi-san.. of all people." Mamoru laughed, shaking his head.

"Ugh, Mamo-chan.." She smacked his arm. "She's very beautiful, and she blushed when she found out she was working with you today."

Mamoru laughed for a bit longer, but he soon stopped when he saw that Usagi was going to finish her rant. He held up a hand to stop her. "Okay, one Hayashi-san is in a loving relationship, Usa-ko."

"Yeah, but-"

"With a woman."

"Oh." Usagi nodded, but she soon placed a hand on her chest and took in a deep breath. "Oh! Oh my.. What a relief!"

"So unless I'm truly that attractive, I'm sure Hayashi-san and I are just really good friends." Mamoru explained, taking a hold of his wife's hand. "Either way, no matter how beautiful she is.. She could never be as beautiful as you are."

Usagi blushed again.

"Oh, and Mamo-chan?" Usagi smirked.

"What is it?"

"You said you would spend every moment reminding me of just how beautiful I was if you could.." Usagi trailed off, smiling a bit mischievously as she pulled Mamoru closer. He was a bit shocked at just how quick she had went from upset to.. whatever this was.

"I did." Mamoru agreed.

"So then why don't do you start now?" She whispered in his ear.

* * *

Outside, Luna waited for Artemis to come back from seeing if Mamoru had cheered Usagi up. Luna sighed as she looked down at her paw. She should really apologize for going off on Artemis like she did. She knew just how sensitive he got when she yelled at him.

She turned her head when she saw Artemis walking back from Mamoru and Usagi's room. His eyes were wide and she took that as a sign that Usagi was probably still very upset, of course.

"Is she doing okay?" Luna asked.

Artemis took a minute but then he spoke. "Great."

"What?" Luna asked.

"Great. He really cheered her up." Artemis spoke again, walking towards the door. "I'm going home now."

"Wait, why?" Luna asked following Artemis. "Why so soon."

"Minako-chan.. needs me.. important stuff." Artemis muttered. "Bye."

Luna watched as Artemis pawed the door open and left her by herself.

She shook her head.

She would never truly understand him.

* * *

**_Poor Artemis. We alllll know what was going on in there? _**

**_Oh and, Hayashi Hana? That was a combination of my favorite Japanese name mixed with a last name that I have heard somewhere at some point. _**

**_Please review._**


	20. The thing about comfort

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon **

_So I have to turn in my two weeks soon at work, and I'm a bit scared considering I've never done this before and all :/ _

_Anyway, After this chapter there are only four more chapters planned. I'm really excited, because this will be the first story I've ever finished. I'm not all that great at finishing stories, only starting them. This must have been one special story for me to actually finish it. _

_I'm happy with this story and I hope you guys are too! :) _

* * *

_(34 weeks) _

"I'm sorry for any inconvenience." Mamoru stated, adjusting the phone between his shoulder and his cheek- shutting the bedroom door behind him gently.

He hated to take the day off of work, but he figured that it was important now more than ever that he stayed with Usagi. They had another false alarm the night before, and that particular one had scared Usagi more than he knew she would admit. Not to mention, she hadn't been sleeping well at all. It was seven in the morning, and she had finally fell asleep an hour ago.

If it wasn't the baby keeping her awake, it was her back, and if it wasn't her back it was the fact that she could no longer sleep in any position she wanted to. Usagi had been very grumpy because she couldn't do the things she wanted anymore, like sleep, or eat everything she laid her eyes on. She had to actually perform moderate exercise and she couldn't sleep sprawled out all over the bed. It didn't help that she was always exhausted.

Much like during her morning sickness, Mamoru was once again the target of all of her anger over the fact that her body was no longer her own. Only this time, Mamoru didn't dare correct her when she put the blame all on him.

After all, he had it quite easy compared to her.

He set the phone down and turned around when he heard a mumble from behind him. He jumped when he saw his wife standing in the doorway looking disheveled and exhausted. He had known this moment would come, of course. He knew that Usagi was a girl who liked to be comfortable, and that just wasn't the case anymore.

"Why aren't you asleep?" He asked.

Stupid question.

She lifted her head slowly to look up at him; with the dark rings around her eyes, pale skin, and her hair framing her face she reminded him a lot of a horror movie they had both seen a couple years ago. Maybe a little scarier considering he had just asked her the world's stupidest question.

"...Back hurts." She mumbled, wincing and rubbing her back. "Feet are hurting too.. and ankles, and I can't sleep."

She frowned, and he thought for a moment that she might break down in tears, but she simply stood there and watched him. He was kind of at a lost for words as she looked at him expectantly.

"You want me to rub your back and feet?" Mamoru asked.

A nod.

He chuckled and walked over to her- grabbing her hand. She took a hold of his hand as well, and he led her back to their bedroom. She eased herself back down on the bed, and he sat down next to Usagi- helping her lay on her side. He grabbed a few pillows stacking them on top of each other, in order to elevate her feet and hopefully reduce some of the swelling.

"Lift your feet up." He ordered gently.

She attempted to lift her feet up, but couldn't get them too high. Mamoru chuckled at her small attempt, and helped her lift her feet up to place them on the pillow; he pulled her wool socks off, making her shiver slightly.

He took a hold of one of her small feet, and rubbed it gently- while the other hand worked on massaging her lower back. Usagi smiled happily and patted his arm, thankful that she had him to pamper her whenever she needed it.

"Sorry you had to take off work cause' of me." She mumbled, eyes growing heavy.

"I don't mind," he responded- taking a hold of her other foot, "I don't mind taking care of you."

"I'm really tired.. of being tired." She said lamely. "I just want Usa here, and I want my feet back- and I want to be able to eat as much as I used to and sleep again. I miss those things."

"I know." He said, as if he truly understood what she was going through. He winced slightly when she turned her head to give him a well deserved glare. "I mean- it's only a few more weeks, and then she'll be here with us. And neither of us will sleep ever again."

She nodded and closed her eyes once more.

"I wish there was a way I could understand." Mamoru said, more to himself.

"You weren't there for that class." Usagi said simply.

"What do you mean?" He asked, beginning to massage her ankles.

"The parenting class.. You had to work, and Rei went with me instead." She explained. "So Rei had to wear one of the fake bellies instead of you and do things like put on her shoes and stuff."

"Sorry." He said quietly.

"S'okay.." She yawned.

It didn't take long for Usagi to fall asleep, but he could tell she was still uncomfortable even while she was sleeping. Mamoru sighed and leaned over to kiss her cheek, pulling the blankets over her.

He truly wished there was a way to share the pain if only for a bit. Figures he was be busy for one of those parenting classes. Usagi only went to two of them, claiming everyone was far too happy.. and he was absent for both of those.

Mamoru sat on the bed for a bit longer, until an idea struck him.

No one said he couldn't make up for missing one of those classes.

He looked over at Usagi who was sleeping somewhat peacefully. He could make up for his absence, but first he needed someone to watch over Usagi.. and to not judge him. Or at least someone who already judged him, and therefor wouldn't be very surprised.

He had just this person.

* * *

"This may just be the weirdest thing you've ever asked of me." Haruka chuckled, as Mamoru motioned her to come in. "So I have to make sure kitten's comfortable, while you do.. whatever it is you have to do."

Mamoru was thankful for Haruka to arrive on such short notice. He figured maybe he could call Minako, or one of the other girls. But then he remembered that no matter which one he called they would probably judge him in their own unique ways. Rei would just raise an eyebrow and stare at him, Minako would just straight out laugh, Ami would try to hide her judging but fail, and Makoto's curiosity would get the best of her and she would simply question him.

Haruka already judged him, so he didn't have much to lose here.

Mamoru grabbed his keys and turned to Haruka, backing up towards the door. "Okay, so she's been super uncomfortable today. If she starts to get upset just rub her feet and ankles and she should be fine. See you in a bit."

"Wait- rub her feet?" Haruka said quickly, and Mamoru shut the door before she could finish her complaining.

Haruka stared at the door, Mamoru had just shut in her face. She would never understand him, even though Michiru insisted they had a lot in common, especially in the way they dressed. Haruka had scoffed inwardly at that, she dressed nothing like that man.

She found herself wishing Michiru was with her, she knew how do deal with an upset Usagi and she was gentle and kind while Haruka considered herself to be more rough and awkward when it came to comforting people- but Mamoru had insisted that she came alone. He had claimed that he had to do something in order to show Usagi that he appreciated her for everything she was doing.

Who knew what he meant by that..

He was odd.

* * *

He had been in this store only a handful of times, and all of those times he had been with Usagi. Now he felt a little out of place as he ventured through the baby store by himself. He earned a few glances from the happy couples who were cooing over the baby clothes and furniture like he and Usagi had done several times before.

Mamoru remembered exactly where it was, because he recalled Usagi finding it and giggling at it quite loudly. She had always claimed that Mamoru should have bought it for himself, so he could see exactly what she was going through.

When he finally found it, he looked in both directions to make sure that no one was watching him. He picked up a box that had a very happy pregnant woman on the front, and an equally happy husband beside her. Under the picture was a phrase that read: ''_share the burden with your significant other!"_

It was one of those fake bellies that men had to wear at the parenting classes; as far as he was concerned it simply wrapped around his waist and he could wear it for an hour, Usagi would hug him and cry, or hug him or laugh, or maybe just laugh. Either way, he was hoping that maybe it would help Usagi be in a better mood, and if it didn't.. Well, at least he tried. To be fair, he was trying to make up for the fact he couldn't join her in any of those parenting classes she had attended with Rei.

Mamoru placed the box in front of the store clerk, and she looked down at it before looking back up at him. He narrowed his eyes at her, and mentally dared her to say something that would question his masculinity. Not that Mamoru questioned his masculinity, despite what Aino Minako would say Mamoru was very masculine thank you very much and this only furthered just how masculine he was.

She shook her head and smiled, scanning the large box. "How sweet. I see you in here with your wife a lot, and if you're not with her she has that loyal entourage of women with her."

Mamoru nodded, reading the price on her register and nearly having a heart attack over just how much a fake pregnancy belly could cost. "Yeah.. she has a lot of people."

"That's good, it's good to have a lot of people." She smiled. "Your wife seems like she's always so happy, it makes my long work days just a bit happier when she comes in."

Mamoru handed her his credit card, and looked down at the ground. Usagi hadn't smiled much lately, since either her feet, legs, or back was always hurting. Not to mention all of those false alarms keeping both of them awake.

"Have a nice day." The woman smiled, pushing the bag towards Mamoru.

Mamoru inclined his head slightly and grabbed his bag, walking out of the store.

* * *

"This is the weirdest thing, I've ever done for you." Haruka gasped out between laughs, she tried to calm down when Mamoru sent her another angry look but she couldn't seem to stop laughing. "Please don't tell me I'm going to have to do things like this when you're king of the Earth."

"Just-Just help me put this together." Mamoru mumbled, as he held up the bags he had to put in the contraption he was currently trying to wrap around his body. "And stop laughing."

Haruka held her hands up in surrender as she got behind Mamoru, securing the fake belly on his body and forcing him to turn around to make sure that it was on correctly. Mamoru held his arms up and looked down, it looked rather flat, except the for the fake breaststhat Haruka couldn't stop laughing at. He narrowed his eyes once more and she managed to stop laughing in a timely manner.

"Never thought I'd see you with boobs, Mamoru-san." Haruka nodded to herself.

"You know I invited you here, because I know you already judge me harshly to begin with." Mamoru explained. "If I wanted someone to laugh at me, I would have invited Minako-chan."

Haruka shrugged. "Yeah but Minako-chan would have taken photos of you and handed them out on the street."

Mamoru opened his mouth to take up for his fr-enemy, but stopped short because that was actually exactly what Minako would do. That was, after she went to the hospital and gave them to all of his co-workers, then she would have sold them on the street.

"So what do we do now?" Mamoru asked.

"I'm guessing we put these heavy bags in there, and then you'll be all set to embarrass yourself in front of kitten." Haruka explained. "Then I will be on my way, and Michiru, Setsuna and I will have a great laugh about this over tea."

Mamoru ignored her and she placed one of the weights on him and he automatically knew he had gotten himself into something very uncomfortable, he stumbled on one leg slightly before looking back at Haruka who was staring at him wide eyed.

Two more, and he was already prepared to take this thing off. He stood on his feet uneasily, and stuck his arms out to balance himself. His sense of gravity seemed very messed up, and he began wondering how someone as clumsy as his Usa-ko could do this for eight months.

"How do you feel?" Haruka asked.

"Like.. a whale." He said slowly.

Haruka nodded. "Yeah, I think I've heard kitten call herself that quite a few times, so I guess that means that we've done everything right. I also think, that means that I will be on my way."

Haruka grabbed her keys making her way towards the door, Mamoru turned towards her so fast that he nearly fell over. He caught himself and somehow managed not to trip and fall into the coffee table.

"Haruka-san." Mamoru called.

"Hm?"

"Please.. please don't tell the others about this."

Haruka nodded, and then much to Mamoru's dismay she smirked slightly. "No promises."

* * *

With Haruka gone, Mamoru figured he should make Usagi breakfast. She would be up any minute, and she would probably be very hungry considering she had slept for most of the day. Mamoru knew that she would be okay with eggs, and maybe some hotcakes. After all, how hard could it be to cook in this thing? It would be a piece of cake.

As Mamoru began to cook, he found that he had been horribly mistaken. For starters he couldn't even see the bowl, and he managed to crack an egg on his very large fake stomach. The other problem was that every time he looked down he only saw the blue of the fake belly and that was it. On his third attempt at cracking the egg, he accidently dropped it on the floor, when he bent down to pick it up, he tripped on it and fell to the ground.

"This is impossible." He grumbled, from where he was sitting on the ground.

"What are you doing?"

He turned to find Usagi standing in the doorway, arms crossed, and looking a lot more rested than she had that morning. He looked wide eyed at the mess he had made on the ground, and he put his hand on the counter in order to help himself up, even though he nearly fell trying to get back on his feet. When he turned around he was pleased to see a large smile gracing Usagi's face.

"What are you wearing?" She giggled.

"Well- I just thought.." He stuttered, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head.

"Mamo-chan, you didn't have to go and wear one of those." Usagi smiled. "I was just joking, I'm perfectly okay with you just rubbing my feet and stuff- you didn't have to make yourself uncomfortable too."

"Oh, thank God!" Mamoru sighed, bending over and rubbing his back, even though he had only been wearing it for about an hour. "My back is killing me, I can't see my feet, do you know how horrible this-"

He stopped when she tilted her head to the side, raising an eyebrow, placing her hands on her hips, and giving him a look that could only be '_are you kidding me right now?'._ He winced and mumbled sorry, and that seemed to be enough for her because she quickly came over and wrapped her arms around his waist, placing her head on his chest. Even though it was very awkward, considering she could barely get her arms around his waist, her belly was awkwardly rubbing against his fake one, and he was currently sporting fake breasts that had forgotten came with the belly.

"You know what you could do for me though?" Usagi smiled.

"What's that?" He smiled back.

"Paint my toenails, because I've been wanting to do it for awhile but I don't think it will work out for me." She explained.

"How about a nice light blue?" He suggested.

"Sounds perfect."

"Okay right after I get this belly off-"

At the moment, a very breathless Aino Minako came busting through their door. She hadn't even knocked, which was something she didn't do quite often and she stopped just as Mamoru was about ready to take the fake belly off. Her mouth practically fell to the floor at the sight of Mamoru, and Usagi covered her face and she couldn't keep her laughs at bay.

"I was- just going to.. tell Usagi-chan about a celebrity sighting at the park.." Minako trailed off, and a huge smile became plastered on her face. "But-But this is even better than that. Oh my goodness!"

Mamoru looked in horror as she looked down at the camera she was holding in her hand, the one she used solely for celebrity sightings. Before he could even move to stop her, Minako had lifted her camera up and snapped a picture of Mamoru.

"This one is going in Chibi-Usa's baby book." Minako laughed.

"Oh, Minako NO!" Mamoru snapped, making a move to grab the camera from Minako's hand.

"Oh, Minako YES!" Minako giggled, quickly pulling away the camera from Mamoru's grasp.

* * *

_**Well, I'm not really proud of it. I had really bad writer's block, but I think the next chapters will be a lot better because I already have them planned out. I don't have a job anymore, because college is starting soon. So I'm going to try to get these chapters out as soon as possible.**_

_**Please review. **_


	21. The thing about pride

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon**

_Hi! Guess what? After this chapter is baby time, woo! Anyway, I'm most likely going to split the next chapter up in three parts because there is a lot going on, because a lot of people picked option 2 and I'm going to transition into CT. Good news and bad news, whatever way you take it I guess. First is, one of those parts is going to end in a cliff hanger, the good news is that I'm writing all three parts at the same time so I can't flake and leave everyone hanging. Also, this is a happy story! Even with all of it's real life-ness and angsty parts, this is a happy story. I promise. I would never end on a bad note._

_That being said, hang on dear readers, if there is a bit of angst, it will get better. I'm an optimist by heart, even if it doesn't seem like so, and I truly believe that everything has a happy ending no matter how bleak._

_There you go, life lessons from sailor-elsa._

**_RESPONSE TIME: _**

_Sky Hopper: __ Thank you, I'm going to use fantabulous to describe everything from now on! _

_Matsuo Miwa: __ Did you know that I read your review when I was with a friend at an amusement park? We were waiting in line for this indoor coaster and I shoved it in her face and was like 'read this, read this review' and she was like 'aww that's sweet' but me, I kept reading it over and over with the dorkiest smile on my face and the coaster operator probably thought I was weird but I didn't even care. Thank you so much, I love it when people take the time to leave me long reviews and with such nice compliments. I try to stay as in character as I can :) _

_sere88:  I'm glad I make your working day better! I know before I put in my two weeks notice I needed a good pick me up to get through my work day. Thank you so much. _

_Guest #1: Thank you so much!_

_xSmallLadySerenity13: __Awesome! I'm excited and nervous to be away from home, but I've always wanted to be a nurse so I'm excited to learn more about the human body etc. I'm excited to write the new story_

_kera69love: __Aw, it was all in good fun though, lol! I'm sure Minako-chan didn't sell it on the streets like Haruka said, and I'm sure that Chibi-Usa will have a great laugh going through her baby pictures with Auntie Venus and seeing her oh-so-formal papa trying to make her mama feel better. It will be fine!_

_askme75080, Sailor Pandabear, Shibue Miyuu: __Thank you! _

_SSTrans: He sure is, and thank you for the review!_

_maryyorke: Ah, yes, that impish Minako. But what would we do without her and her shenanigans? _

_Guest #2: __ Thank you! I was under a lot of stress, and I'm glad you still enjoyed the chapter_

_Guest #3: Please live. The story isn't over yet! ;) _

**_Okay on with the chapter! This one is a bit silly :D_**

* * *

(36 weeks)

Mamoru Chiba didn't have a care in the world. To say it had been a good week was an understatement. Since he was finally able to take off for work to prepare for the baby, he had a lot of time on his hand so much so he didn't quite know what to do with himself. To begin, he had finally taken Usagi's advice and left the house for a bit, as did Usagi. He decided to go out with for a round of drinks with Motoki, and another good friend who had agreed to drive them both home in case they overdid themselves. Usagi had went somewhere nice with the girls.

Being able to confide in his old friend about all of his stresses and worries (even though he was *slightly* intoxicated), had been more than nice- and even though Motoki wasn't really well-educated in the 'upcoming father' department, he had given Mamoru his best advice.

In the end they both ended up safe at home, and even though Mamoru had to be helped up the stairs, Usagi was kind enough to put a couple painkillers next to the beside in the morning- and a glass of water.

Mamoru leaned back in his chair, staring up at the ceiling. Now that everything was prepared, his friends were busy, Usagi couldn't travel much anymore.. he was bored. Part of him wanted to go and enjoy the things young-adult Mamoru had taken for granted, and the other part of him really wanted a nap.

He was pulled out of his reverie when Usagi's face appeared above his, he jumped slightly- almost hitting his head on her's. She rolled her eyes and took a couple steps back, so he could sit up and actually look at her.

"Is something the matter, Usa-ko?" He asked.

She sighed, and smiled at him. Even though it wasn't one of those gentle smiles that she gave him whenever he said something cute, or whenever he made her so happy that she couldn't come up with words. No, this was one of _those _smiles that she had been given him a lot lately. The one that managed to be in love with and utterly aggravated with him at the same time. The one where her eyebrows became furrowed together and she narrowed her eyes slightly, and the her smile looked more like a smirk than an actual grin.

"Something is the matter.." He said slowly.

She nodded. "Yes, something is the matter. I keep asking you to put that bassinet together, Mamo-chan. You know, we only have a few more weeks, and then we're going to bring the baby home- and she's going to be without a bassinet. Our poor child."

He looked at Usagi, and barely contained his amused smile.. because while, sure, she would be without a bassinet they still had a crib. Surely, Usagi was being a bit too dramatic. In the end, Mamoru decided to keep his mouth closed because even though Usagi was very pregnant, he had no doubt she could pick something up and fling it at his head like she was throwing her tiara at him.

"Did you ask? I didn't really remember.."

"Yesterday. Ten-Thirty. You were taking off your shoes and we were getting ready to go to bed, and I looked over and said 'Mamo-chan you still have to put the bassinet together' and you looked at me and said 'okay Usa-ko.. I will get to it tomorrow.'"

Mamoru blinked. He found himself truly impressed and amused at his wife recalling that entire conversation, and he hadn't even remembered a word of it. He shook his head, was he really getting old that face.

"I mean, it was late.."

"I said it again this morning Mamo-chan!"

Mamoru put his hands up in surrender. "Okay, sheesh. I'll go in there right away and I'll put that bassinet together. Don't worry, our baby will not be without an adorable pink bassinet."

Usagi smiled, a genuine smile this time, and kissed Mamoru. "Thank you!"

Mamoru figured he could get this done in an hour tops.

How hard could it be?

* * *

In the end, Mamoru was quite impressed with his work. It only took him an hour, and most of the time was spent trying to get the legs attached to the actual the bassinet. He stood and admired it, nodding to himself in pride. He didn't even use the instructions that were lying on the other side of the room. Yeah, Chiba Mamoru was a man far too intelligent for instructions.

"Ooh, very nice!" Usagi smiled, standing beside Mamoru with a bag of chips in her hand- she placed her other hand on his shoulder. "Now, all we have to do is move it.." she paused and looked around, "over there."

"Over there?" He asked, walking towards the pink bassinet and pointing to the corner that Usagi had just chose.

She nodded in response.

Much to Mamoru's dismay, when he went to lift the bassinet up, it fell apart. One of the legs became detached and the bassinet collapsed to the ground; he watched as his hard work (okay, actually just an hour- but it had been a long hour) fell apart right in front of his very eyes.

"Well.. that's unfortunate." Usagi quipped, as she put another potato chip in her mouth. "Definitely not safe for a baby."

"Don't worry," He said quickly, "I'll put it back to together in no time."

"Sure you will, Mamo-chan."

He grumbled to himself and sat back on the ground, gathering the parts and trying to figure out where exactly he went wrong. Unlike last time, Usagi didn't leave the room- instead she eased herself in the rocking chair with a grunt and placed her bag of potato chips on her belly, suddenly very pleased with the fact she had a place to set her snacks.

He worked quickly, putting the legs back on the bassinet, and making sure it was secure before putting the last one on. Mamoru smiled at his small victory. Soon he would have this last leg on and he would once again be able to sit around and be bored. Hell, maybe he would go rent a movie for him and Usagi to watch.. or maybe he'll get started on that novel he'd been planning since he was sixteen.

All he had to to was snap on the last leg and it would be done..

It didn't snap on.

He frowned to himself as he tried get it to stay, but it didn't seem to latch on like the other ones had. He gritted his teeth as he pressed it down and he could have sworn that he almost had it on and then it..

It broke. Again.

Mamoru yelled out in anger, and Usagi threw her potato chips everywhere in shock.

"WHY IS IT SO STUBBORN?" He groaned.

"Maybe you should read the instruction manual?" Usagi suggested.

He quickly narrowed his eyes at her and she smiled sheepishly.

He didn't need an instruction manual.

* * *

"Come on, it's midnight, Mamo-chan." Usagi yawned, coming back to the nursery to check up on her husband who was still trying to put the bassinet together. "I mean, it's not all that important.. I was being a bit over-dramatic."

Mamoru, who at this point had his hair sticking up in odd angles and his reading glasses resting awkwardly on his face, didn't even look up at Usagi. He shook his head in response and looked back down at the instructions. He had given up after the third time and figured that maybe he could use the instructions as his aid. Much to his surprise, the instructions didn't tell him anything he didn't already know.

"Okay.." Usagi trailed off, resting her hand on her belly. "We're going to go to bed then, because I'm tired and you just.. do whatever you're trying to do Mamo-chan and I hope that it will be done by morning."

"It will." Mamoru said simply, frantically looking up at his wife. "It will."

Usagi nodded, and patted Mamoru's head affectionately because leaning down to kiss him didn't seem like something she was capable of anymore. She spared him one more worried yet amused glance before she left the room.

Mamoru stayed in the same position for a few more minutes until he heard the bedroom door shut. After he was sure that Usagi was going to sleep, he made his way to the phone, and dialed the person he knew could come and help him.

It took her a few seconds to answer, and he could hear her mumble and clumsily try to press the phone to her ear. "Mm, hello? This is.. Mizuno Ami speaking what can I do for you.." She mumbled, clearly still half asleep.

"Yes, hello Ami-chan.. It's me.. Mamoru." He whispered, leaning back and looking down the hallway in order to make sure he didn't wake up Usagi. "Look I know it's late but there's something that I need you to help me with."

He could hear her sit up quickly, suddenly wide awake. "Is everything okay?"

"Yes, listen, everything is good." He said quietly. "I just- I need you to help me- It's a pride thing."

She stayed quiet, and he could hear her sigh and he knew at this point she was probably rubbing her forehead in confusion. During this time, Mamoru was still looking down the hallway.

"I'll be there in thirty minutes."

* * *

Mamoru waited by the door for Ami, and before she could even knock he had opened the door. Ami had been more than shocked to see his disheveled appearance, and she herself seemed to have hastily put some clothes on and she was nursing a cup of coffee in her hands.

When he led her into the nursery, Ami had almost giggled at the fact that he needed her help on something as simple as putting a bassinet together. That was until she helped him put it together and, once again, the whole thing fell apart when she attempted to attach the last leg. Ami had simply smiled and reassured Mamoru that she must have done something wrong.

That was until the sixth time..

"This makes absolutely no sense." She whispered, more to herself as she ran her fingers through her hair. "It's not even that difficult- the instructions say just to snap the leg on and it should be finished. It's not a complicated set up."

"We're doctors." Mamoru nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, we should be able to do something as easy as this." She replied.

She placed her face in her hands and thought for a second, suddenly she sat back up and smiled at Mamoru. "Maybe we need someone stronger? Someone who isn't afraid to apply a little force."

"You mean like.."

She nodded.

* * *

Makoto mumbled in aggravation as Ami led her down the hall, and into the nursery. Unlike Mamoru, she had actually informed Makoto that it was something as simple as putting a bassinet together. Okay, maybe she hadn't told her that Mamoru had been working on it for hours, and that Ami had come shortly after and the two still couldn't get it together.

But what Makoto didn't know wouldn't hurt her.. Maybe just them.

Ami and Mamoru worked as a duo to put most of it together, but they left the very last leg for Makoto. The brunette gave them an amused smile. She found it kind of silly that they couldn't put this together. After all, they had both graduated with perfect grades in a top university. Maybe if she was able to put this together she could become a doctor.

Makoto went to put it on and, once again, it fell apart.

She stared at it in horror while Mamoru and Ami simply stared at each other knowingly.

"Did I.. Did I break it?" Makoto whispered.

"No, it's been doing that all night. We were hoping that you could add a bit of, I don't know, force.. maybe you could get it to actually stay together." Ami explained, and Makoto nodded cracking her knuckles.

They had to stop her at her fourth try because she was going to throw the bassinet out the window. She sighed in defeat as she slumped against Ami. It was too late and she was too aggravated and too determined to sleep now. She was briefly reminded of that time when they were fifteen, and had fixed up that car for the sweet widow, it became all of their dreams.

Right now, putting this together and going to bed was her dream.

"Let's call Rei-chan." Makoto said suddenly.

"Rei-chan?"

"Yeah, she's graceful and resourceful, maybe she could get it to stay together." Makoto explained.

"It's worth a shot." Mamoru said.

* * *

By the time the called Rei, and told her in a whisper just to come in and go to the nursery, Usagi had already woke up. It hadn't taken her long to realize that Mamoru had yet to put the bassinet together and that he had called upon her friends to help him. Usagi smiled to herself in amusement at just how prideful Mamoru could be at times, and no doubt their daughter would inherit that from him.

Rei and-surprisingly- Minako entered shortly after, shutting the door quietly behind them. Rei jumped when she saw Usagi looking at her from the sofa, and she raised an eyebrow in response.

"They said you were asleep." Rei said quietly.

"Just let them think that." Usagi replied.

When Rei and Minako entered the nursery and saw Makoto, Ami, and Mamoru sitting around the broken object and staring at in pure disgust they both knew they were in for a treat.

"Minako-chan, you came too?" Makoto asked.

"Yeah, she was staying over tonight." Rei nodded.

"Noisy neighbors." Minako explained.

"So what do you need me to do, just put this last part on and then.. go home." Rei said, crossing her arms over her chest and staring down at the half-broken bed in confusion.

"It's not.." Mamoru mumbled.

"Just-Just yeah, that's it." Makoto finished.

Rei and Minako sat down with the others and Rei attempted to get it to stay on, she smiled up at the others when it snapped on and for the first time in hours, they all had looks of hope on their tired faces. Minako patted Rei on the back, and her elbow gently nudged the bassinet and it came tumbling down once more. At that moment, Makoto glared at Minako, Ami buried her face in her hands, and Mamoru fell over.

"Okay, in my defense.. that was clearly not safe for a child!" Minako said.

In order to make up for her wrong doing, Minako tried to put it together by herself the next time. They all watched in anticipation as she tried to ease the last part on... But, alas, it fell apart once more.

"This is like a very intense game of block stacking." Minako mumbled.

"We have no other choice." Ami said quietly.

"You don't mean.." Minako trailed off.

"Yes, we have to call _them_."

* * *

Usagi looked up in surprise as Setsuna, Haruka, Michiru, and Hotaru walked in. None of them had changed out of their pajamas and Hotaru seemed to be dead on her feet. Usagi on the other hand, was a few episodes in on her favorite show, with a bowl of popcorn resting on her belly. She smiled at the women as they made their way down the hall.

"Very clever, kitten." Haruka smiled, pointing to the ball of popcorn.

"Thanks, having a ball in your belly comes in handy for this sort of thing." Usagi smiled.

When they entered the room, they were surprised to see that everyone was already waiting for them, and Minako had fallen asleep on Rei's lap. To be honest, everyone was pretty much done. Unlike the times before, there was no explanation; Mamoru simply motioned towards the bassinet and Haruka took that as a her signal to try to finish this. She could definitely do this, she was great with working on cars and such.

No one was surprised when Haruka couldn't do it.

Michiru couldn't do it.

Hotaru couldn't..

Not even Setsuna.

"I never saw this coming." Setsuna whispered.

"I thought for sure I could do it." Haruka responded.

"Oh will you guys just go to bed already?" Usagi snapped, standing in the doorway and glaring at all of them.

"I have to.." Mamoru mumbled. "I have to put it together, Usa-ko."

Usagi sighed and walked forward taking an actual look at the bassinet for the first time. The others watched drearily as she bent over just enough to pick up the last leg, she scrunched her nose a bit, pressed down on it.. and it clicked.

The others looked at it in shock, and Mamoru tilted his head to the side.

"See.." She smiled. "Very easy."

Makoto, who was somewhere between exhaustion and amazement, gently pressed her elbow against the bassinet. Much to everyone's glee, it didn't fall apart or break. Usagi smiled at everyone and nodded. Mamoru fell to the ground, sobs muffled by the carpet; the outers simply gave up and left, Makoto stared on in horror, Ami was very confused as to how a girl who couldn't chew gum and walk could outsmart them, Minako was asleep, and Rei was mumbling to herself.

"I.. I'm going to go home now." Rei whispered, patting Minako's arm in order to wake her.

"How did you do it?" Ami asked, as if she was figuring out some sort of scientific discovery.

"I just didn't think about it." Usagi shrugged.

"I AM GOING HOME NOW!" Rei yelled, pulling a very tired Minako out of the room.

* * *

_I actually like this one. Yeah, it's a bit more silly but I think it's nice._

_Please review._


	22. IMPORTANT (NOT A CHAPTER)

_I honestly hate to make these things but it needed to be done. So don't be like 'JENNIFER FANFICTION RULES SAY NO CHAPTERS THAT AREN'T STORIES' cause I know ya tattle-tell (jk). _

_Anyway it's been a little over a month since I updated and I need to explain to you guys that I'M STILL here. It was my plan (my plan failed obvi) to have this all out by the 26th of AUGUST, yeah well crap happened I guess? I started college on the 26th (well I moved into my dorm on that date) and before that I was just really depressed and sad, and I didn't feel like writing. It was my first time leaving home and I struggled. A. LOT. _

_BUT I have the first and the second part done. CHIBI-USA has already been born where I'm at in this story. I have already broken your hearts in a million pieces and mended it in the third part where I'm at in this story. It's just in my doc manager and I need to edit it but I can't find the time._

_Cause' I'm a nursing major which is pretty time consuming and stressful and on a lot of days i'm studying or at my 3 hour Human Anatomy class._

_But I'll get it done I just need everyone to know I'm still here. I haven't given up.. And I get there._

_I promise._


	23. The thing about Chibi-usa (part 1)

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon**

_Well here it is friends, the last actual chapter of this story, broken into three parts. By the time I post this part I'll already be completely finished with the other two parts. I really enjoyed writing this and it's the first story I've ever finished, so there's that. _

_Just a little disclaimer on my own part, I'm not a mother I'm an 18 year old who watches Sailor Moon, tries to hard in school, cries, and gets potato chip crumbs all over her bed. That being said, I don't really know much about childbirth considering I've never experienced it. I was in the delivery room with my sister and that's about as far as I go. So, Google, plus my own knowledge is what I used. _

_I did juggle for a little bit on whether make a note that they remember Chibi-Usa's birthday was on the 30th (same day as Usagi's). Because, while yeah, it's kinda hard to forget idk. I thought maybe since time is such a fickle thing, after some years they would maybe forget.. idek. Anyway, no, they remember. I just thought them remembering would make it a little more funny(?), because the 30th is such a big day and they're both nervous, and Mamoru is a wreck making sure Usagi is okay every minute. Adorable._

_Anyway, here you go!_

* * *

(38 weeks)

(June 29th, 2:00 P.M)

"In other news, a cold front is predicted to be making it's way through Japan this coming week." The voice of the newswoman pulled Mamoru from reading the book in his hands. He looked up from the novel, before placing it on the coffee table in front of him and reaching for the remote control- turning up the T.V. "Of course, everyone is finding this a bit odd, considering it could one of the coolest days in June we've seen, for more information-"

Usagi chose that moment to get Mamoru's attention by standing in front of the television. Despite it being past noon, she was had two dresses in her hands, holding them out towards Mamoru. It took the man a few minutes to realize she wanted his opinion.

"The.. blue one." Mamoru said, choosing the silky blue dress with flowers, over the simple pink one she was holding in her other hand. "I think it will bring out your eyes."

Usagi pouted. "Really? I mean, there both maternity dresses but this one looks so.. motherly."

"You are going to be a mother." Mamoru chuckled.

"Yeah but I don't wanna dress like one, Mamo-chan!" Usagi whined.

Usagi took one last look at both of the dresses before sighing in defeat and setting them down on the coffee table. It had been the girls' idea for her to pick out a couple dresses for her birthday. Even though Usagi had persisted that there wasn't much of a point in celebrating her birthday since the baby was set to arrive anytime that day.

Of course, they had been more than exasperated with her when she had said that- and it was Minako's idea to have Usagi's birthday on the 29th instead. So now, Usagi had to find something to wear since the girls and her parents would be at the apartment sometime that evening.

"This is too stressful." Usagi mumbled, pouting.

Mamoru smiled at her gently and motioned for her to come and sit next to him. Usagi complied, easing herself next to Mamoru and laying down- resting her head on his lap. He ran a hand through her hair and looked down at her. To be honest, they had both been a bit stressed about Chibi-Usa's arrival, and it showed in everything they did.

But the bags were packed, everything was planned, and it would be completely fine.

"Are you going to miss being pregnant?" He asked.

She looked down, pulling up her shirt just enough to see her round belly. She placed a hand over it and pondered his question. Sure it had been difficult, and most of the time she had complained. But to know that it was her daughter in there- the little girl she had known before she was even conceived- it was a wonderful feeling. When Usagi was fifteen she had thought that her love for Chibi-Usa had been maternal, but now she really knew what that felt like.

"I will." She nodded, and a small smile formed on her face. "I think I'll miss this adorable outie belly button the most." She said, poking her belly button for emphasis.

Mamoru smiled in response and the two fell quiet. It was very odd to Usagi that in a day or so she would go from Tsukino Usagi, to 'mama'. She would be someone's mother, and Mamoru would be someone's father. And not long after that.. Usagi would stop being Usagi all together and would become Queen. She didn't even know how to be Queen, it was enough to make her stay under her covers and not deal with anything.

Maybe when she was fourteen and fighting evil alone, with some man in a pea green jacket bothering her.. Maybe she would have cowered away then. But after several heart wrenching battles later, she was slowly becoming confident that perhaps she could do it.

Usagi opened her mouth ask Mamoru a question, but her words were lost in a small grunt as a pain radiated through her back. She arched her back a bit to allow her hand to reach behind her to try to ease some of the ache. Luckily it didn't last long at all and she was looking up at Mamoru once more. She was hoping that perhaps he hadn't caught it but his gaze said otherwise.

"Usa-ko, are you okay.." He asked, voice wavering slightly, due to nervousness.

She smiled and waved her hand. "It's fine, she's been kicking pretty hard all day and I've had back aches for awhile now. Besides, we have until tomorrow and you know that these false alarms having been showing up left and right. It's okay."

"Are you-"

"It's fine, Mamo-chan." She smiled, reaching up to playfully poke his cheek. "Now, help me up so I can get dressed."

* * *

(4:00 p.m)

"Why do you insist on helping so much, Usagi?" Rei snapped, continuing to help Makoto with the birthday cake. "We're making your birthday cake, for your birthday party.. so stop butting in, baka."

Usagi stuck her tongue out at her friend playfully, and proceeded to dip her finger in the cake batter while Makoto gently swatted at her hand. The girls had arrived about thirty minutes before, and they immediately got to work on preparing for Usagi's birthday party. Makoto and Rei got started on the cake- and after a little guidance, Ami and Minako got started on the dinner. Usagi, was trying to get a little taste of all the food.

"Yeah, Usagi-chan.. we're having a birthday party for you today since you're going to be having a kid tomorrow." Minako quipped. "I don't think you're going to want cake during that time."

"It wouldn't be healthy at all for Usagi-chan to have cake during labor." Ami spoke up.

"Ah! That sucks." Minako gasped.

"Is Haruka, Michiru, Hotaru-chan, and Setsuna-san coming to the party?" Usagi asked, in an attempt to get the conversation off of the fact that Chibi-Usa was destined to arrive on the 30th. "I remember Rei-chan mentioning something about inviting them."

The other four grew quiet, the smiles temporarily gone from their faces. Usagi looked at them, a confused gaze on her face, it was like she mentioned something horrible. She didn't understand the sudden somber attitude of the girls, and she let out an awkward giggle in an attempt to rectify the problem.

"So.. I take that as a no." Usagi trailed off.

Rei took a deep breath and sat the spatula that she was using down. "Usagi-chan.. We didn't really get to talk much to them, they were very stressed it seemed. I-I'm not entirely sure why, but they said it may be awhile before we see them again."

"W-what?" Usagi asked, she could feel the lump in her throat already forming.

"Usagi-chan, with Chibi-Usa's arrival.. They mentioned that something big was coming." Makoto finished.

"Most likely the thing that leads up to Crystal Tokyo, a-and I imagine that they had to go back their respective posts. That means, Setsuna-san most likely going back to the the time-gate, and the other's guarding from the outer planets." Ami explained, slowly.

It took awhile for it to sink in. All of this time, and it never really dawned on her how close this impending disaster actually was. On top of it all, they wouldn't get to see their new princess when she was born. Setsuna who loved Chibi-Usa with all of her heart wouldn't get to be there for her birth, and Hotaru who had a deep bond with the child would not get to see her best friend.

All because of destiny.

It wasn't fair.

She wasn't aware that there were tears streaming down her face, until Minako pulled her into a hug. The other girls followed Minako's actions and it wasn't until she had everyone's arms around her, did she cry harder; large tears streamed down her face and her sobs came out in broken mumbles. It was so unjust, and Usagi could barely deal with the injustice of it all.

"N-No f-fair!" Usagi sobbed.

"Yes, but they knew it was going to happen." Rei said, kissing the top of Usagi's head. "So it's time to stop crying, because you don't want to look gross at your birthday party."

Usagi pulled away from the group hug, and wiped away her tears, letting out a watery laugh and nodding. Everyone was working hard for this birthday dinner, so she shouldn't ruin it with her tears.

A few minutes later, they returned back to their work.

The mood was beginning lighten again, when another pain hit Usagi. This time it was a bit stronger than the last one; once again, starting in her back and radiating towards her stomach. It was enough to make her hunch over the kitchen counter and grunt. Again, she had hoped that no one had noticed but when she turned around the girls were staring at her, eyes wide.

"W-What?" She smiled.

"Usagi-chan are you.."

"Is it the baby?" Minako whispered, eyes wide in panic, and skin pale as if she could faint any minute.

Usagi shook her head. "N-No it's fine. I'm fine."

Her answer didn't appease Ami, or Rei for that matter. "Usagi-chan is that the first one today, or has this been going on for awhile.. because, it's a little concerning I must admit."

"There was one earlier today." Usagi shrugged, and when she saw the look of pure anxiety on everyone's faces she continued. "I've had them off and on during these last months and they've always been false alarms, not to mention.. the last one was about an hour ago. If the baby was coming it would more closer, maybe.. I think. Anyway, the baby is going to be born on the 30th."

"But contractions in early labor can-"

"She'll be born on the 30th." Usagi nodded again, and Ami knew Usagi wasn't going to take any other answer. "A-And please don't tell Mamo-chan, I just want to have a nice party with my family."

Rei rolled her eyes, and glared at Usagi. "Fine, but you're pretty damn stubborn, and if I see so much as a twitch from you I'm cutting the party short and dragging you away if I have to."

* * *

(6:00 p.m)

Despite feeling nauseous, Usagi still attempted to smile and at least pick at her food. She hadn't been feeling sick all day, but the pain she felt a few hours before had left her stomach feeling very nauseous. Luckily, she had managed to eat Mako-chan's delicious cake and open all of her presents with a smile. After all of that, the attention was off of her and onto idle chatter.

"Usagi, sweetheart.." Her mother's voice caught her attention.

"Are you feeling okay, honey, you're looking kind of pale." Ikuko asked, concern itched on her face.

"I'm feeling fine, mama." Usagi nodded, smiling. "I'm just really tired lately."

Ikuko nodded knowingly, sending her daughter a sympathetic look. She could feel someone nudge her arm from beside her, and Usagi looked over to see that Rei was staring at her once again. She sent the raven haired girl a pointed look, and she backed off.. for now.

"I can't want for the little one to get here." Kenji said excitedly, practically bouncing in his seat. "I know you're probably excited, after all just a few more weeks and she'll be here, I know when Usagi was born I was terrified."

Usagi almost corrected her father, but then she remembered neither her mother or her father were aware that it was already set and stone that their daughter would arrive a bit early. They weren't aware of anything, she thought sadly. They weren't even aware of her destiny. She would be lying if she said her heart didn't ache at the thought that her parents might not make it to Crystal Tokyo. At that depressing thought, Usagi reached out and took a hold of her mother's hand.

"Are you okay, sweetheart?" Ikuko asked again, squeezing her hand gently.

Usagi blinked back the tears that were threatening to fall. "I-I just love you a lot."

Ikuko smiled, pinning her daughter's sudden depression on the pregnancy. She patted her hand. "I love you too, and I'll know you'll be just fine."

Her mother let go of her hand, and she almost didn't want to pull away; she felt Mamoru grab a hold of her other hand, and she turned her head. He was staring at her, his eyes warm and his lips forming a sympathetic smile.

"Shingo is even excited!" Kenji continued on with his rant, although he was talking to other girls now. "You should hear him telling all of his friends about how he's going to be an uncle, it's adorable!"

Shingo flushed furiously and nudged his dad in the arm. "Be quiet."

"That's very charming." Ami responded, smiling at Shingo and the boy's face turned an even deeper shade of red then he thought was possible. "The baby will have so much love."

Rei nodded in response, smiling, and she turned to Usagi. When she looked at the blonde her face grew serious once more, her knuckles were white from where she was digging into the table, and Rei could tell her jaw was clenched. It didn't last very long, but Rei knew that this one had been a tiny bit stronger than the last one had.

Rei went to say something, but Usagi gently shook her head.

Rei looked around at everyone else and realized she was the only one who had noticed.

* * *

(8:00 p.m)

"You guys didn't need to stay and help, I could have washed these and put them up myself." Mamoru commented, as he reached to put another bowl up. The girls had been more than eager to stay for a bit longer.

"It's no problem, Mamoru-san.." Rei looked over at Usagi who was laughing with Makoto, seemingly fine. "You need all the help you can get.. with dishes and such, we're just being good friends."

Usagi, on the other hand, didn't feel as well as she was letting on. There seemed to be a more consistent ache in her lower back, and if she was being completely honest she was still desperately trying to hold onto the idea that the baby would come on June 30th. After all, the pains hadn't been consistent and they were not much stronger than the false one's had been.

What was the use of going back to the hospital if they were only going to send her back?

With that being said, she gently took some the glass dishes from Makoto, in order to take them to Mamoru. She was in the middle of the kitchen, when a pain hit her. Stronger than any of the ones she'd had before. In fact, it was enough to make her cry out. She hunched over, hand going to her stomach, and the glassware falling to the ground- shattering and successfully getting everyone's attention on her.

"Usa-ko!" Mamoru gasped, hurrying over to his wife and putting his hands on her shoulders, rubbing her back in a soothing motion in order to relieve some of the pain. "Are you okay? Usa-ko.."

Usagi looked down, as if she couldn't believe what she was seeing. Her cheeks were already bright red. She slowly lifted her head up to meet Mamoru's worried gaze, and the eyes of her guardians who were on the edge of freaking out.

"M-My water just broke.."

Chaos ensued.

* * *

_**It's totally baby time.**_


	24. The thing about Chibi-Usa (part 2)

**_Disclaimer: I don't know Sailor Moon_**

**_Okay PLEASE read, very important. I end this part on a cliffhanger, and you guys may hate me. HERE is the thing about that: I have my reasons. I'm trying to create a prelude to CT. ALSO, I have an end note at the end of this part that is very important, for my sanity that you read it because if I get reviews about it, I will be very grumpy. _**

**_Also, don't worry about the cliffhanger. I will be posting the third part tomorrow despite it being a Monday, so expect an update around 2-ish, maybe earlier. _**

**_Warnings (there are): cliff-hanger (that's a warning, yes it is), and childbirth (I mean, if that makes you uncomfortable)_**

* * *

(8:30 P.M)

Rei Hino had never had a reason to be absolutely terrified of Usagi until now. Before then, Usagi's anger and threats were nothing to her; they simply bounced right off of her back and she brushed them off as being adorable if not a little annoying. But now, sitting next to her best friend who was in an extreme amount of pain, Rei was pretty terrified.

To be fair, the atmosphere was a lot calmer then it had been about fifteen minutes ago when it was initially revealed that, yes, Chibi-Usa would indeed be born very soon. There had been a lot of panicking. Usagi automatically panicked begging Ami to 'make her water un-break'. When Ami replied that was scientifically impossible and Usagi had justified her requests by reminding Ami that she was 'the senshi of water, surely she could fix this.'

Minako and Makoto had held onto each other screaming incoherent things at the top of their lungs, Mamoru's face had turned a deathly pale color, and Rei's hand had soon become clay for Usagi to mold however she pleased. Not that Rei really cared much, after all, she didn't know how her friend felt and quite frankly she didn't want to know.

Luckily, things were quiet now as Rei sat next to Usagi who was silent excepts for the intervals of pain, where she would grab onto Rei's hand-squeezing the life out of it, hunch over, and half-sob and half-groan until it stopped.

"About five minutes apart." Rei said gently, placing a comforting hand on Usagi's back waiting for her to take a couple of deep breaths. "You know, I did tell you that the baby was probably coming tonight, but no.. you never listen to Rei-chan."

Usagi sent Rei a withering glare, and Rei shut up concluding perhaps her 'I told you so's' could wait until the baby was born and Usagi was once again comfortable. But if Usagi didn't think that Rei wouldn't bring this up every year on Chibi-Usa's birthday, she was wrong.

"I didn't know it would hurt this bad." Usagi winced, sitting up uncharacteristically straight. "It's only going to get worse, R-Rei-chan what if we can't make it to the hospital and I have the baby in the car. I don't wanna have my baby in the car!"

She sobbed on the last note, grabbing a hold of Rei's shirt and crying on her shoulder. Rei chuckled gently, trying to escape from Usagi's grasp. "You're doing great, okay? And Mamoru-san is pulling the car around and the other's are making sure everything is packed and we're going to go to the hospital and their going to get you all settled and soon the baby will be in your arms."

"I love you, Rei-chan." Usagi whispered.

The moment was cut short when Usagi gasped, clenching her jaw and grabbing a hold of Rei's hand once more. The raven haired girl tried to hold back her own wince once more and she placed her hand on the small of her friend's back, as she bore through the contraction, breaking off in a sob and burying her face in Rei's shoulder, trying to hold back her pitiful cries.

"How's she doing?" Mamoru asked breathlessly, walking into the bedroom with two bags in his hands. He was cut off when both Usagi and Rei sent him equally frightening glares. "Okay, I take that as not so good. Everything's ready, Rei-chan.. You and Ami-chan will come with me and Minako-chan and Mako-chan are heading to the hospital to check us in."

Mamoru looked over at Rei, and she took that as a silent request to be alone with Usagi for a moment. The raven-haired woman nodded, standing up and giving Usagi one last shoulder pat before switching places with Mamoru and making her way into the hallway to update Luna and Artemis on what was going on.

Mamoru took a hold of Usagi's hand, and she looked up and gave him a weary smile. They both stayed silent for a little bit.

"Are you ready?" Mamoru asked.

"No." Usagi admitted. "But I'm going to have to be.."

"Well," Mamoru smiled, "I guess it's onto the future."

* * *

(9:30)

It took thirty minutes for them to get to the hospital. In that thirty minutes, Usagi successfully crushed the hands of both Ami and Rei. It was expected that she would most likely crush Rei's hand, but when poor Ami had unknowingly given Usagi her hand- Usagi had used the strength neither of them knew she possessed to completely remodel the poor girl's bones.

Rei hadn't been able to warn her in time. They could have kissed Minako and Makoto's feet when the discovered that they had arrived in time to have check Usagi in, and they were able to get Usagi comfortable (well, kind of comfortable) and secure in a room.

The four girls sighed and leaned back in the chair, it had been thirty minutes since Usagi had gotten settled and they were still waiting for word to go and see her. Ami stared down at her hand with a small pout.

"I think- I think she may have broke my hand." Ami whispered.

Makoto took a look at Ami's hand and winced, it was pretty swollen and bruised. "Man, Usagi-chan is scary when she's in pain. By the way, I went ahead and called her parents, Shingo-kun answered and he sounded pretty excited."

"They should be here soon." Rei nodded.

"You know how Chibi-Usa is supposed to be born on Usagi-chan's birthday?" Minako began, looking over at the other's who nodded for her to go on. "Well then, that means Usagi-chan will most likely be in a labor until like midnight or later, ya know?"

"Aw, poor girl." Makoto whispered.

"Poor Mamoru-san." Ami responded, looking down at her hand.

* * *

"Four centimeters?" Usagi said, rather loudly flinging the cup of ice around- much to Mamoru's dismay. "Are you telling me that the dumb doctor came in here to tell that I was doing a good enough job, and that I'M ONLY FOUR LOUSY CENTIMETERS DILATED!"

Mamoru sighed, and tried to smile kindly at his wife. It was true, she still had a little while to go but he didn't know if it was anything to get this worked up over. The poor doctor had left in quite a hurry as soon as Usagi had started on her tangent.

"You know," Mamoru smiled taking a hold of Usagi's hand once more, and staring down at his clearly exhausted wife, "It's not really his fault, Usa-ko. In fact, you're almost half-way there."

Mamoru could have smacked himself in the face, because the glare that Usagi gave him proved that whatever he said.. no matter if he meant well, was clearly not the answer that his very angry wife wanted to hear; she turned her head away from him, crossing her arms over her chest and pouting slightly. Mamoru's hand fell lamely at his side.

"Oh, okay.. I see how it is." Usagi said quietly. "I guess the doctor is more right then I am, is that correct? Well let me just tell you a thing or two about all of this, because I am the one who is giving birth here, not you Mamoru-baka. I'm the one who has to- Oh!"

Usagi took a hold of Mamoru's hand. He felt a bit powerless to help her as she bore through an extreme amount of pain. He could only rub her hand and try to be of some comfort as she arched her back and cried, squeezing Mamoru's hand so tight it was almost blue. He didn't mind though, he would try his best to hide his pain from her.

"Ow." She whimpered, holding onto his hand with two hands now. "This hurts."

"Just breath through it, Usa-ko." Mamoru responded.

"I. Am. Trying." She snapped through gritted teeth, she took a deep breath and sent him an apologetic look as the pain subsided slightly. "I'm trying, Mamo-chan. I am so stupid, I stopped going those classes and now I don't even know what I'm doing. I'm already doing everything wrong."

He leaned down and kissed her forehead, upset that even though all of her fight was gone, it was replaced with discomfort. "You're doing fine, in fact the nurse said you're progressing faster than most first time mothers."

"Yeah, well most first time mothers aren't carrying the future moon princess." Usagi smiled, patting her belly affectionately. Her smile disappeared after a moment, and she looked up at Mamoru. "Hey, do you think.. did it seem a bit chilly out tonight?"

Mamoru looked down at his feet. He didn't want to be the one to bring it up, but it seemed so cold outside that Mamoru had to pack Usagi a coat before they could leave for the hospital. He saw Rei's face when she realized she could see her breath, and for a summer night it was very odd. The month of June was Japan's rainy season, not very cold at all.

"I know what this means." Usagi said quietly, rubbing her thumb over Mamoru's knuckles. "I know that when she's born, Crystal Tokyo will have it's beginnings.. and I just wanted to tell you, Mamo-chan if something were to happen-"

"Don't talk like that." He snapped, a bit too fiercely.

"Mamo-chan." She said, eyes meeting his. "If something were to happen to me, in this battle. If the future were to change somehow, I'll do everything in my power to see that Crystal Tokyo comes to be.. but you need to take care of her- and make sure she's loved."

"You're going to be fine." Mamoru said, smiling. "We saw the future and King Endymion warned us of the ecological disaster that led to Crystal Tokyo- and Neo-Queen Serenity was the one who saved the world. So you'll be fine."

She smiled in response to Mamoru, but she couldn't shake the feeling that something was horribly wrong.

* * *

(10:30 P.M)

Mamoru watched as Usagi paced the hospital room. After awhile her parents had stopped by for a visit, her mother had scolded her not-too-lightly over the fact that she had been having contractions while they were over, and didn't think to tell anyone. They hadn't stayed for long, opting to stay in the waiting room with the senshi until the baby was born.

Shortly after they left the room Usagi had suddenly got the urge to start walking, stating that her legs were getting too cramped. With much effort (and the permission of the nurse), Mamoru helped her stand. Now he could only watched as she took slow steps around the room, pacing.

"It was Rei-chan, you know." Usagi grumbled.

"What?" Mamoru asked.

"It was Rei-chan who told my mama." Usagi pouted. "Just like that meanie, to tell my mom on me."

"You were being silly, Usa-ko." Mamoru stated, not really minding whether or not she got a bit irked with him. "Are you telling me that you were in pain all day, and you didn't tell anyone."

Usagi clicked her tongue, and walked towards Mamoru. He took that as a sign that she wanted help back in the bed, he grabbed a hold of her hands guiding her to the bed, and pulling the covers over her legs when she finally got rested.

"Yes, okay, I was in pain all day.. But it was my _birthday party_ Mamo-chan and it was special." She whined; she looked down at her belly. "And to be fair to myself, I thought this kid would hold on until the thirtieth like she was supposed to."

"Well to be fair to... our kid, she may actually hold until the thirtieth." He explained. "You're not even six centimeters.."

"Oh don't remind me," she mumbled.

There was a quick knock on the door and before either of them could answer, Minako peeked her head around the corner. Usagi smiled gently and waved her friends to come in, but she made sure to send a glare to Rei. The raven haired girl looked a little taken aback at the blonde's sudden look of absolute distrust.

"Very mature, meanie Rei-chan, you told my mom on me?" Usagi snapped.

"Even in labor you're annoying as can be!" Rei rolled her eyes. "Yes, I told her because she asked me how long you've known the baby was coming and I told you've known all day, because there was no sense lying to her."

"Oh, that's rich-" Usagi broke off in a gasp, grabbing a hold of Mamoru's hand.

The others watched in amazement as Mamoru managed to somehow not scream because she was most likely breaking every bone in his hand. Rei, had already moved to provide some comfort to her friend who was enduring another wave of pain. It was quiet in the room, except for the whispering coming from Mamoru and the room seemed to only get lighter after the pain subsided.

"That one was bad." She whimpered. "I can't even scrape my knee with crying, this is terrible."

"You're doing awesome, Usagi-chan." Minako smiled. "Trust me, I'm like.. never having children. I think Chibi-Usa will be my honorary kid and I can buy her stuff and spoil her.. But you'll be her actual mother."

"Yeah!" Makoto agreed. "Chibi-Usa has four awesome aunties."

Usagi grinned at her friends' eagerness. She knew it was true, Chibi-Usa was a lucky baby to have so many people that already loved her a cherished more than she could ever know. While it was true, her daughter would grow up to be spoiled she couldn't help but hope that she would learn valuable lessons from the women who were willing to lay down their lives for her.

The blonde laid her head back on her pillow, eyes suddenly heavy from exhaustion.

"I love you guys." She whispered.

"We love you too." Makoto replied.

* * *

(11 P.M)

Usagi had fallen asleep. Granted it wasn't exactly a peaceful sleep, and they could still see the signs of discomfort on her face, but she was asleep nonetheless. The four girls and Mamoru stayed huddled around the bed, until it was clear that Mamoru himself was growing tired from sitting in one place. It had been a mutual agreement that they would leave the two by themselves, but while the other girls left the room.. Rei stayed behind.

"You want to talk about this random cold front that's making it's way through Japan." He said, without even looking up at her. "Maybe it's just some kind of freak weather. No one said that Crystal Tokyo has to come so soon."

Rei smiled, but it came out more like a grimace. It was very unlike Mamoru, but she could tell he was pulling this uncharacteristic optimism from Usagi's book. It was funny to her the way that girl's personality seemed to rub off on everyone.

"It's not, though." Rei said quietly. "Mamoru-san, it's all over the world.. and since we've been here it's only gotten worse."

He didn't say anything, only looked down at Usagi who was snoring slightly.

"The outers left." She explained.

"I know." He said, a bit more forcefully than he would have liked to. "I know they did, and I know what's happening. It's just I- I don't even know how to explain myself."

"You're afraid we might not be ready." Rei nodded, looking down at her feet. "Me too."

He shook his head, and she looked back up at him. He leaned over and stroked a stray piece of Usagi's hair back in place. "I don't care much about me.. I'm afraid that she won't be ready enough."

"She's fought countless battles." Rei said, a bit defensively on Usagi's part. "One of which she was completely and utterly alone, and she handled herself just fine. I never thought you would be the person to underestimate her."

Mamoru stayed quiet, and Rei continued. "You know it's always her, Mamoru-san. It's always her who gets thrown out to fight, and it's always her who is the last one standing. I wish it would be different, but you know she's the one who has to do it."

"Something is different this time, I know it." Mamoru explained. "She talked to me today, and she told me if something was to happen to her, I had to take care of the baby. We know that it will be soon, but what if- what if she's too physically weak and using the silver crystal this time actually kills her?"

"Don't talk like that!" Rei snapped, in the same tone that Mamoru had used on Usagi earlier. "Just hear me out, that baka- she says silly things like that all of the time. She'll be just fine, me and the other senshi will see to it."

"I don't- I _can't _lose her." Mamoru said, a bit more desperately than he would have liked.

"You won't. If I have to give her every ounce of my power, I will..." Rei said. "We will not lose her this time."

* * *

(12 A.M)

She was cursing herself for the decision of giving birth 'naturally', of course it had seemed like the right decision at the time, but now that she actually knew what it felt like she really wished she hadn't been so naive. She had been peacefully sleeping until a pain sharper than any monster that had attacked her, pulling her out of her slumber, and she automatically knew it was her daughter reeking havoc inside of her.

Although, she would admit that it was pretty funny when she grabbed Mamoru's hand and held onto it for dear life- pulling him out of his sleep. He had automatically freaked out at just how much pain she was in. It hadn't taken long for the doctor to arrive and confirm that she was in fact approaching seven centimeters and that meant that- well, Usagi had blocked him out then because screw him for thinking he knew anything.

"I must say, you are moving faster than a lot of first time moms." He commented, or complimented? She wasn't entirely sure that could be a compliment. "So it shouldn't be long now."

Shouldn't be long now. She could have laughed in his face. It wouldn't be long because her daughter wasn't a normal child. She was not only affiliated with lunar royalty but Earth as well, so of course she would arrive faster than other children. Usagi didn't know much about science but she knew a thing or to about this magical world she was thrust into.

"She's impatient, always impatient." Usagi mumbled, and the doctor smiled at her response.

Oh, if he only knew.

He left and Mamoru sat down next to her, this time holding a wet rag in his hands. She could have kissed him as he placed it on her forehead, automatically aiding the heat that resting in her face. She was sure she was beginning to sweat a bit, and part of her couldn't believe that Mamoru had to see her like this and the other part of her couldn't care less.

"You're almost there." Mamoru said gently.

She could have cried. Here she was mentally cursing him because he was comfortable and happy, and she was in pain. There he was being so unbelievably sweet to her despite the fact her cheeks were flushed, one of her buns had almost completely fallen apart, and she was sweaty. She did end up crying, but not because of Mamoru. The pain returned and she couldn't even breath as it overtook her again. She turned away from her husband, who didn't even complain but instead tried his best in rubbing away some of the persistent ache in her back.

She was miserable, and the thought that there would be more of this to come made her cry. Literally, she started crying. Mostly because she couldn't even breath from the pain and if she thought they were bad before they were three minutes apart now and it hardly gave her any room to breath. When she returned to her position on her back, Mamoru was automatically concerned about her ragged breaths.

"Come on now, Usa-ko, you need to breath." He said, placing his hand on her shoulders.

She only sobbed, shaking her head and trying to take in another breath but it felt like she was breathing out of a straw. He attempted to get her to calm down with helping her breath, and after a bit she could finally get her breathing back to normal. Her sobbing broke off into a cough, and Mamoru reached over to grab the cup of water- bringing it to to her lips.

"Please, Mamo-chan.." She whined, falling back on the pillow. "Please I wanna go home."

He pushed her bangs away from her face and kissed her forehead.

"You're almost done." He whispered. "You're doing great."

Surely this couldn't get worse.

Right?

* * *

(1 A.M)

Mamoru didn't let go of his wife's hand after the doctor declared that she was ready, he smiled down at her and realized that she didn't return his smile. Instead she was staring straight ahead, eyes a little glassy, and he knew that the pain now was almost constant. He felt a bit powerless, and the only thing he could do was press the rag against her sweaty forehead, and hold onto her hand.

When the doctor had announced the news he had left her momentarily, just to tell the others that it would be any time now. They had, of course, erupted in applauds- everyone except for poor Shingo who had fallen asleep in the hospital chairs.

When hurried back into the room, he was shocked to find that three nurses had arrived- and in the corner they were already preparing for when the baby would be born. His heart seemed to leap with joy, until he remembered that his poor wife was in an unspeakable amount of pain and perhaps his smiles and cheers could wait until the baby was out and she was once again comfortable.

Now, sitting next to her things seemed to moving fast. To be fair, as soon as the doctor had announced it was time, everything seemed to move incredibly fast. But as the nurses helped situate his wife's legs, the gravity of everything hit him.

The baby was coming.

"Okay, on the next contraction I want you to push." The doctor explained.

Usagi nodded, or shook her head he wasn't entirely sure. But before he could say anything to her- she was squeezing his hand and trying not to cry. He was barely aware of the doctor ordering her to push, but she did. She gripped onto his hand, harder than she had all night, and bore down- sitting up slightly. His heart seemed to ache with pain, as fell back on the bed, crying and clutching onto the sheets desperately.

"Amazing, you're doing amazing." He stated.

"Shut up.. Mamo-chan." She snapped, glaring up at him.

He shut his mouth knowing better than to try to say a lot to her doing this time. But as she was forced to push another time, she sobbed out his name and some kind of broken apology and he knew that she hadn't meant anything she was saying.

He lost count of how many times she pushed, as it turned into a cruel routine with her crying and grabbing onto him. It seemed like forever until any progress was made, and he couldn't believe that just earlier the doctor was commenting on how quick she was progressing.

Then, after what seemed like a lifetime...

"I can see her head." The doctor said with a smile, and Mamoru grinned down at Usagi who seemed to be dazed- with her eyes cloudy and her face sweaty. The doctor continued. "I need you to give me a big push, just enough to get the head out."

"M-Mamo-chan." She whimpered, looking over at him. "I'm really tired."

He nodded, and he could feel his eyes tearing up due to pure happiness. "I know you are, but she's almost here. I love you so much."

His words seemed to give her some sort of strength, because on the next push she was almost completely sitting up, with his hand bracing her back. Usagi actually yelled out for the first time that night, and even though she knew everyone was talking to her and comforting her, all she could hear was their drown out voices as he world became a kaleidoscope of colors, and blood seemed to rush to her ears.

She was so damn exhausted. But she could hear them clean out her daughter's mouth, and if she tried hard enough she could hear the small cries that she knew belonged to the baby she had been carrying for so long. For the first time since she had started delivering her, Usagi smiled. It was a faint one, and she couldn't really see her.. But it was a smile.

"I can see her face, Usa-ko." Mamoru smiled, his voice cracking. "She's so beautiful."

"Okay just a couple more." The doctor informed. "Just a couple more big pushes."

She nodded, or at least she think she nodded. She wasn't entirely sure.

Everything was becoming to hard to understand, and she was cold. Despite the stuffiness of the room, a coldness had seemed to settle somewhere in her bones- and her head was spinning. The only sound she could hear over everything was her heartbeat that rang loudly in her ears.

Mamoru, on the other hand, was on cloud nine. He tried his best to comfort his wife as she pushed once more. This time, she was silent- as she gritted her teeth and held onto him. She fell back onto the bed, trying to breath.

"One more." The doctor informed.

"One more, Usa-ko." Mamoru smiled.

"I can't- I can't do this. I'm sorry." She sobbed, her tongue felt heavy in her mouth. "I can't do this anymore."

"Yes you can, only one more." He responded, moving her wet bangs off of her forehead.

"I'm so tired." She whispered, teeth chattering.

Before she could prepare herself, her already weak body was hit with another contraction. She grabbed a hold of Mamoru's hand, and pushed harder than she had before. This time, she actually screamed- until she finally felt some sort of relief.

She fell back on the bed for the last time, eyes growing heavy as her exhaustion finally took over.

Mamoru looked at the crying baby in the doctor's arms. She was red from screaming, and her strawberry hair was covered in blood and other various fluids. But she was beautiful. The little girl he had seen when she was only a precocious five-year-old was right in front of his very eyes. The only sound were her wails that she most certainly inherited from her mother.

He had been so preoccupied that he hadn't felt Usagi's limp hand slip from his. He could feel the tears streaming down his cheeks, a huge smile plastered across his face. He could feel himself letting out a sort of giddy laughter. He turned to Usagi and...

Her eyes were closed, and her face was a deadly pale color. The doctor and one of the nurses seemed to realize this as well as they passed the baby to one of the other nurses. Mamoru was already on it, though. His hands found their way to Usagi's shoulders and he shook her desperately.

"Come on, Usa-ko." He whispered. "Usagi."

"Her blood pressure is dropping, doctor." The nurse informed in a hurry. "She's loosing blood."

"USAGI, come on.. wake up!" He screamed frantically, and he could feel an orderly grabbing on to his arm- perhaps to insist on hauling them out. "Don't do this to me, Usagi. Wake up!"

Despite, Mamoru's height the orderly had no problem carrying a screaming Mamoru out of the room. He watched as the doctor's attempted to work on the love of his life, when the door was brutally shut in his face.

"That's my wife!" He screamed, slamming his entire body weight into the door.

"That's my wife." He broke off in a sob, falling onto his knees and crying loudly.

No, this wasn't right. They hadn't prepared for this. She wasn't supposed to go, this was not right. They did not spend months preparing for the baby, only for it to end this way. Usagi had not spent most of her nights cooing to her unborn child for it to end like this.

He hadn't heard the girls approaching him, racing down the hall. He didn't feel Minako fall onto her knees, or Rei pulling him into her arms. He didn't hear Makoto's desperate questions, or Ami's medical knowledge. He didn't hear or see anything.

Because if she was gone. What was there to see.. or to hear?

Why couldn't they just be happy?

* * *

_**(YES HELLO READ THIS BEFORE YOU MURDER ME PLZ AND THANKS)**_

_**OKAY, I know what you guys are thinking. "DID YOU KILL USAGI!?" **_

_**And HERE is my simple answer: no. **_

_**I didn't kill Usagi, she's alive, she's going to live. I'm not going to kill her, I promise.. So just hold on. **_

_**So MAYBE you're like 'WHY WAS THE NECESSARY!"**_

_**You'll see. You'll see.**_

_**Don't kill me, I'm a sweet and happy girl. Usagi will get to hold Chibs, everyone will be happy. **_

_**I promise. **_


	25. The thing about Chibi-Usa (part 3)

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon

**_I'm such a liar, omg. I promised I would have this posted by Monday, about 2-ish and here I am on Tuesday at 10-ish finally posting this. Well, I have a valid excuse. I had a paper to write, math to do, 2 modules for Human Anatomy- and no time to simply write my author's note and post this, because I'm really busy and I didn't want to half-ass my author's note, since this is the last chapter and it's really (as cheesy as it sounds) important to me, because this is the first story I've ever finished._**

**_I wrote this on August 24th of last year, and finished it on October 6th of this year. It took me awhile, and there was a lot of procrastination, but I persevered and actually wrote something I could finish. This makes me really happy, and I think this story will hold a special place in my heart._**

**_Okay, so this is important.. You can expect the first chapter of this story's sequel most likely December to early January. So maybe 2016, I'm not sure yet. I apply for clinicals in February and most of my time is going to be dedicated to keeping my GPA up, because becoming a nurse is very important to me. I also want to mold this into CT nicely, and I want the sequel to be great- so it may take some time. _**

**_The sequel will explore NQS and King Endymion raising Small Lady, so it's going to be more connected than this one- most likely with an actual plot than just cute drabbles, because the sequel will include The Black Moon. So prepare for more angst, sorry._**

**_In this last chapter, I tried to prelude towards Usagi ascending towards her role as NQS. _**

**_Enough talking now :) _**

* * *

Usagi felt really.. warm. It was a very comforting, considering she had felt rather cold there for a bit. After everything went black, she was overcome with this feeling of sudden coolness- and then warmth. The heaviness she felt was replaced with a sensation she could only describe as floating. Although, her heart felt heavy. She wasn't stupid and she had become familiar of this feeling after being Sailor Moon for so many years.

She could have laughed, if she could open her eyes or move her face. How ironic that she would die this way, with only a glimpse of her newborn daughter. She could only hope that Mamoru would take good care of her, and that they could survive whatever evils were thrown at them.

She felt a bit angry if she was completely honest. Setsuna hadn't warned her of this future, she had only reassured her that the one she had seen was a happy one. Maybe Pluto could be wrong this once.. Usagi shouldn't be so angry after all. She was only a fallible human being.

But to fight evil for so many years and to survive so many triumphs, only to die in childbirth.

That was enough to make her want to scream..

If she could say anything at all.

The darkness surrounding her was suddenly broken by a blinding light. She looked on in defeat as it came towards her. Wasn't she supposed to choose to go into the white light? Isn't that how dying happened? Her experiences in death were nothing like this, as the white light engulfed her.

She didn't want to die yet.

* * *

When she woke up, she wasn't in the hospital bed. She was lying on a hard floor, staring up at a beautiful ceiling- decorated with small intricate designs. She blinked a couple times, her eyes still heavy from being closed for so long. After awhile, she found the strength to actually stand up, her hands leaving the cold marble floors and finding their way to her face.

Was she in heaven? Is that what this was?

She looked down and her eyes widened at the sight of the white dress she was wearing. She was familiar with it, from her days as princess Serenity- and from the countless battles she had won adorned in the same gown. Her hands went down the dress, taking in the gold accessories.

Her hands stopped at her stomach, which was now flat. As flat as it had been before she was pregnant. She frowned, even though the pain was gone- and she felt energized.. She was away from her baby, and from Mamoru. What was life without those two, without her beautiful friends?

She looked around, and was taken aback by the sight before her. The sight of the earth stood out against the dark sky. She knew this view from long ago, and she realized quickly she wasn't dead..

She was on the moon.

"Welcome home, Princess." A gentle voice said from behind her.

Usagi turned around quickly. Queen Serenity stood, adorned in the white glow she always seemed to carry with her. The Queen held her arms out expectantly, and Usagi hurried to her feet- and to her mother from the past. She surprised the elder Serenity with a hug- and the woman laughed in response, holding her cool arms around her daughter.

"Am I dead?" Usagi asked, pulling away and looking up at the woman.

She shook her head, but a frown stayed on her face. "No, Princess, you are not dead. But I'm afraid that you are in a critical situation on Earth, and whether you live or die depends solely on you."

"Doesn't it always?" Usagi said sardonically.

Queen Serenity didn't seem to catch her comment, or she chose to ignore Usagi's choice of words all together. She looked behind her daughter, at Earth, with an expression of worry and sadness.

"In a about a months time, Earth will be attacked by an ecological disaster." The Queen told her daughter. "It's time for you to embrace the power of your future self, Neo-Queen Serenity."

"I'm going to stop being Usagi?" She whispered, more to herself than to the woman in front of her.

Serenity looked down at her daughter, and closed her eyes- and Usagi knew her answer immediately. "I'm afraid, that when you become Neo-Queen Serenity, you will lose your life as Usagi Tsukino. Your life will belong to the people of Earth, the same way mine belonged to the people of the Moon."

That's right. She could never simply be a mother to her daughter, or a wife to her husband. When she was born on the Earth she was already given a destiny that she had never chose for herself...

"Will I still have my memories, my personality.. or will I be a totally different person." Usagi asked.

"You will stay yourself, but you will have the powers of the sovereign of Earth, and the name as well." She explained. "As for your memories, you will still keep them.. but I'm afraid, after awhile they will fade. Just like everyone's does eventually with age."

"What if I said 'no'?" Usagi whispered, looking up at Serenity. "What if I said I didn't want to be the Sovereign of Earth. What if I said that I just want to live out the remainder of my days with my husband and my daughter."

Queen Serenity's face grew sad once more and she shook her head. "I'm afraid, you will not survive. If you embrace your destiny you will receive the power of your future self, healing yourself on Earth, you can call upon that power when you finally need to. If you do not embrace that power, Princess.."

"..You will die."

Usagi nodded, tears finally threatening to fall down her face from the finality of it all. So this is the bleak future that Setsuna had spoke of, one where she didn't survive. A world where she forced the others to carry on without her. How could she ever be so selfish? She could never let her daughter live without a mother.

"If I choose to embrace my destiny, I will be healed.. I'll get to spend time with my family as Usagi for a bit longer?" Usagi asked finally, after a short period of silence.

"You will officially become Neo-Queen Serenity when the time comes to call on that power." The Queen explained. "When you wake up, you will be no different."

"You mean I'll still look like myself, and act like myself?" Usagi clarified. "I'll be able to be Tsukino Usagi for just a little while longer?" She couldn't stop the hopefulness from making it's way into her voice.

"Princess, you act like becoming Queen will be the end of your life.." Her mother said gently, a sad smile on her face. "Please believe me when I say it's only the beginning. You will still be the same woman you are today. The power to save the Earth.. Darling you've always held that inside of you ever since you were born to your parents."

"Will my parents- will they live?" Usagi asked.

Serenity frowned. "I'm afraid- just like Sailor Pluto- I can not tell you everything."

Usagi nodded even though it did nothing to heal the ache in her chest. This was a lot to take in, and she couldn't help but feel like she had no other choice. She had never realized that it would begin this soon.

"You'll make a wonderful Queen, I can tell you that." Serenity smiled. "Fair and loyal, and merciful. Everyone will look up to you, especially the newest Princess who is waiting for you on Earth. She's waiting for her mother's embrace."

Oh, that's right Usagi hadn't even had the chance to hold her yet.

"I'll do it." Usagi nodded, looking at the Queen in front of her. "I'll become Neo-Queen Serenity, and I'll be the Sovereign of Earth like I'm destined to be. I'll do my best."

Queen Serenity smiled. "Close your eyes, Princess. This will be quick- and before you know it you will be back on Earth with your Prince and your little girl."

Usagi complied, closing her eyes as she felt Queen Serenity place a finger on her forehead. Almost right away, Usagi felt her forehead grow warm- and her body become overcome with a feeling of power, of strength. She subconsciously wrapped her arms around her body as the power spread from her forehead to her toes, destroying any last feeling of cold that was still settled in her body.

And just like that.. Everything was black again.

But this time, she could still hear Serenity's voice.

"Remember, Tsukino Usagi, you were born onto this Earth to be happy.."

* * *

She opened her eyes with a gasp. It took her a moment to realize that she was staring at the ceiling of her hospital room. She attempted to lift up a hand, but found that her bones still felt heavy- and every movement caused an ache to run through her body. She realized, with a bit of disappointment, when Queen Serenity had said that she would still be the same- the pain from giving birth was still in that equation. She had only healed her body enough to keep her from dying. The pain was still very much there..

Especially in her legs and stomach. She tilted her head down slightly in order to look down at her body. She had a blanket over her legs, but her right foot stuck out just enough for her to wiggle her toes. It took some effort, but she was finally able to move her foot, just a bit.

When she was finally able to bring a hand to her face, she discovered that there was an oxygen mask over her mouth- that had given her the curiosity to turn her head to the right and find the oxygen tank- and that's when she saw Mamoru.

His hand was still holding on to her limp one, and he was lying his head just by her hip. A pang of guilt went through her, when she took notice to his messy hair, worried face, and tears still making their way down his cheeks. She had left him and Chibi-Usa all alone, and for a man who had been all alone his entire life- she had unknowingly broken his heart.

She tried to close her weak hand around his, and she did- just enough to make him squeeze her hand back. Usagi turned her head away- to stare straight ahead. That's when she noticed the small bassinet just at the end of the bed. It was adorned with balloons and presents, and Usagi knew just inside was her daughter.

"B-Baby.." She whispered, although it came out more like a slur- and almost impossible to hear due to the mask that was still on her face.

The monitor that was keeping track of her heartbeat made a noise. Indicating that her hear was speeding up just the slightest. Unbeknownst to her, that was just enough to wake Mamoru up.

"U-Usa-ko?" He whispered, sitting up and staring down at her like he couldn't believe she had opened her eyes.

She smiled weakly, and moved her hand over slightly until it was over his. Her other hand attempted to take the oxygen mask off of her face, but Mamoru stopped her-gently guiding her hand back to the bed. He took the oxygen mask off of her gently, placing it beside her.

"You scared me.." He whispered.

She shook her head, frowning. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to.."

"Don't be sorry." He said quickly, bending down and placing a kiss on her forehead. "I was just so scared, Usa-ko. I was so scared to think that our daughter may have to live in a world without you."

At the mention of Chibi-Usa, Usagi turned her head to the bassinet in front of her. Mamoru seemed to notice, and a large smile spread across his face- despite his tears. Usagi watched as he got up, and walked to where their child was. Her face automatically lit up when she saw the tiny bundle Mamoru lifted in his arms.

He walked back to her slowly, careful of the baby in his arms. Usagi could hear the small whines already coming from the fussy newborn. She still held her arms out expectantly, and her heart skipped a beat as the small bundle was placed into her waiting arms, and the baby automatically grew calm when she focused up on her mother.

Usagi thought, in her completely biased opinion, that her daughter was the cutest baby she had ever seen. She was in complete awe by just how beautiful she was. Her crimson eyes stared into Usagi's blue ones, trying to focus up on the face she instinctively knew to be her mother's. Her small lips formed an 'o', and Usagi ran a finger through the tuffs of strawberry hair.

Usagi smiled, letting out a watery giggle. "She's so beautiful.."

"I'm going to go tell the other's that you're awake, they'll be very happy." Mamoru said, leaning down to kiss Usagi's forehead- and then his daughter's cheek. "So I'll leave you two alone for a little bit."

Usagi nodded, eyes never leaving the newborn's. She spent a couple more minutes staring down at the baby when Mamoru left, not able to find words to say to the child who had been inside of her for what seemed like forever.

"You.. kicked me a lot." Usagi said lamely, but the gentle smile never left her face. "I think I'll miss that feeling but it's so much better to have you here in my arms."

Chibi-Usa opened and closed her mouth, waving her chubby arms in response. Usagi ran a hand down her cheek. "I have known you for years, and you've only truly known me for about fifteen minutes."

"It's not like you'll remember, but you will one day.." Usagi explained. "But back then I saw you more as a little sister. Now- Now you're my child. I promise that I'll protect you."

Chibi-Usa's eyes were so focused on her's that she almost felt like the child understood her. "The truth is, soon things are going to change and you're going to become a princess- not that you aren't already one. But things are going to change for both of us, but as long as we have each other.. We'll be just fine."

She smiled, tears falling down her face. "Sometimes you might feel lonely, but I promise that I'll make sure you're never alone."

"-We're going to be fine." She repeated again.

She looked up when she heard the door open, and she smiled at the sight of her teary-eyed friends crowding the doorway, and Mamoru leaning back against the door.

"Took you guys long enough." Usagi giggled.

It was Rei who reacted first, hurrying over and wrapping her arms around Usagi, careful of the baby- and cradling the blonde's head to her chest. It took Usagi a minute to realize that the raven-haired girl was crying, quiet sniffles muffled by the top of Usagi's head. She looked up at Rei.

"Rei-chan.." Usagi whispered.

"Don't ever scare me like that again.." Rei said, shaking her head. "Ever."

"Let's not be sad anymore," Usagi smiled, changing the subject. She lifted her arms up slightly, to show off Chibi-Usa who was now dozing off in her mother's arms. "See, we have a reason to celebrate."

Rei nodded, and smiled through her tears- the other girls walking up behind her, and wiping their own tears. They stared in awe at the new baby, whose large eyes were still fixed on her mother's face, although it was clear by the newborn's drooping eyes she was ready to fall asleep.

"So this is Chibi-Usa," Minako smiled, placing a hand on Usagi's shoulder. "You did good Usagi-chan."

"Hey, Mamoru-san had something to do with it." Makoto laughed, pointing at Mamoru who was on the other side of the bed now, settling back in his chair and watching his new family.

"I did most of the work." Usagi said, sending Makoto a pointed look.

"How are you feeling?" Ami asked, and Usagi could see the concern etched on her face.

It was more than odd that she made such a quick recovery. Usagi looked around at the other's who were still cooing over the now sleeping baby. She decided that she would tell them about her meeting with Queen Serenity in the morning, and the future that lay ahead of them. For right now, she would allow them to celebrate.

"I'm feeling good, tired but good.." Usagi smiled, and it was true. She felt happy, and it was her smile that had calmed Ami's concerns, and the young doctor smiled back- turning her attention to Chibi-Usa.

Yeah, the future could wait for just a bit longer.

* * *

Mamoru watched as Usagi tried to keep her eyes open, still cradling their daughter in her arms. After the senshi left, her parents and Shingo had visited her briefly, realizing how tired she was, and promising her that they would return in the morning. Something about the way Usagi had begged them to stay, saying she wasn't tired, made Mamoru's heart hurt. It was like she was holding onto what precious time she had left with them.

He looked over, and she had dozed off once more, head against the pillow.

He laughed and stood up. "Okay, I'm taking her from you, Usa-ko." He said, gently retrieving their sleeping daughter from her arms. "You need to rest, you've had a long day."

She made a whining sound, when he gently took the baby in his arms. "M' not tired.." She mumbled, yawning and proving herself wrong. "I'm wide awake."

"Did you hear that, Usa, your mom is a liar." Mamoru whispered to the baby, whose large crimson eyes opened slowly. "You know we're going to have to call her by her real name eventually, she wasn't Chibi-Usa until she came to the past, from the future."

Usagi nodded. "We're going to have to call her Usa.. Until, Crystal Tokyo then it will be Small Lady."

Mamoru nodded, and they both grew quiet. Mamoru looked down at his daughter's angelic face, and he was sure Usagi had fallen asleep until she spoke once more.

"Mamo-chan?" Usagi whispered.

"Yeah?"

"The future is coming sooner than we think." She sighed.

He looked up at her, their eyes meeting. He nodded. "I know, Usa-ko."

"But I'm not afraid, not anymore.." She smiled, her eyes falling shut. "I'll protect everyone, like I always do."

Mamoru didn't respond until she was fast asleep, and then he reached over and ran a hand down her cheek- smoothing a stray hair behind her ear.

"I'm not afraid either.."

Outside, on June 30th, it began to snow.

* * *

**Okay, that's it! I can hit the complete button, and I hope you enjoyed.**

**I'm so very proud I finished this, and I'm satisfied, and I hope you all are as well. **


	26. Update!

Hi all! I'm opening up this story real quick to inform you guys that I have a written an excerpt for A thing About a Baby in Mamoru's POV during the finale. A couple people were asking for it so I wrote it :D

So I would appreciate it if you would go give it a read!

~Jennifer


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